Heartbreaker
by 1Pagan3
Summary: Sequel to Whole Lotta Love. Family comes in all shapes and sizes, always giving you strength to make it through the tough times, but what if it's family that threatens to tear you apart?
1. Chapter 1

AN/Disclaimer: As usual I own nothing of Kripke's, the CW, Warner Bros or anything else that belongs to Supernatural, I play with them and put them back.

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Sam woke up next to Dean and saw that it was a cloudy morning, but that didn't bother him at all. Dr. Lucas said that he was better and if he wanted he could go back to school! Although he still didn't like being inside that much, he knew it would be better because Jessica was going to get to sit next to him every day, and Dr. Mayfield was going to teach them until a new teacher was found. He liked her, and couldn't wait to talk to her this morning. He wished his big brother could be there though, but he had school today too. Sighing, he thought about how much he was going to miss being with his Mommy and Daddy, but remembered that they told him they would see him right after school and he could still help Daddy with building the new shop.

Taking another look at his brother, he quickly got out of bed and quietly got dressed. He knew that his parents were drinking coffee in the kitchen, that's where they always were early in the morning. Lately though it had been different, they had been talking quietly when they thought he and Dean weren't around and Sam knew that it had something to do with Ms. Chase and why she wasn't going to be a teacher anymore.

Making his way down to the living room, he could hear his Daddy saying, "Mary, we can't keep him. We just need to make it quick before we get too attached." Stopping to listen, he wasn't sure what they were talking about, and a part of him was actually scared they were talking about him; then his other half kicked into gear and called him silly, making him walk into the kitchen and ask. "Who can't we keep Daddy?"

Startled, John and Mary turned around to look guiltily at their son totally forgetting what they had in their arms until they heard Sammy shriek. "A PUPPY!!!!" Mary watched as her little boy ran across the room and snatched the little bundle into his arms and cuddle it close to his chest. "What were you saying dear?" she asked.

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Dr. Mayfield was excited and she didn't care who knew it. After the last couple of weeks where one of her teachers had been arrested, and the reason for that just happened to be the reason why she was so elated to be teaching again. Sam Winchester was coming back to school and she was more than willing to fill in as a substitute Third Grade teacher until another teacher could be found. However, she had already made it abundantly clear that the next teacher that walked through her school's doors will have had an _extensive_ background check.

Looking at the clock she knew that she had a few minutes before Mary and John brought Sam into her office for a little meeting before class started. Remembering the first time she saw Sam made her smile. He had hid behind Mary when they came into her office, but after speaking with him she knew that he was someone special; especially hearing about what he had been through in his young life. Yes, she was definitely looking forward to having Sam back in school. Thankful that Mary had called her to arrange this meeting, she felt that she had an opportunity to assure him that he was safe now and that she would do everything she could to keep him that way.

The knock on the door broke her reverie and she anxiously looked up as the door opened, this time John held the door open for Mary and Sam followed closely by Dean. "Good Morning Dr. Mayfield, I hope you don't mind but Dean insisted that Sammy needed him here today." Mary smiled at her eldest boy then rolled her eyes when she saw his 'charming' grin. 'Oh boy, he's in one of _those _moods' she thought, hoping that they could get through this without Dean acting… well… like _Dean_.

It didn't take long for them to get reacquainted, and for Sam to get comfortable with Dr. Mayfield again. In fact, she realized in less than five minutes, that this little boy walking next to her now was definitely going to give her a run for her money. They had already said their goodbyes to John and Mary and were walking to the classroom, with Sam talking nonstop about the puppy that had come 'scratching at the door this morning and how wonderful it was and mommy and daddy says that we can keep him if we take care of him and he's so small and licks me all the time.' She couldn't help but laugh at his enthusiasm, now if she could just channel that energy into learning, then her job will be a cinch.

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The cottage was so quiet that it was driving Mary up the wall. John had found another contractor who didn't care about what he heard in town, just as long as he was paid well for his work, so they were meeting to finish mapping out everything including the small parking lot and driveway.

Looking around the house she realized how much she missed her boys being with her, she knew it was selfish, but she wished that she could keep them just the way they were right now. Sighing, she was about to fix another cup of tea and start reading the paper while the clothes in the dryer finished it's cycle when the phone rang.

"Hey Mary, do you think you'd be available for a couple of hours?" Jack asked over the phone line sounding extremely tense.

Not knowing what was wrong, but not willing to let their friend down, she readily jumped at the chance to help. "Sure Jack, what do you need?" After hearing what was requested, she quickly grabbed the keys and took off towards the road, pausing only to let John know that she'd be back soon and to watch out for Sammy's animals.

She had reached Jack and Penny's house shortly after setting the Impala in motion. Running inside, she knew it was bad when Penny didn't look up. When she reached over to look at the mail, Mary saw what had her friend so upset.

"We thought they'd stop when Barbara was institutionalized and Jack was given his credentials back at the hospital." Penny whispered, not wanting to look at the stack of letters that had been delivered that day. "It seems that it's only gotten worse."

Jack pulled the rest of the letters out of Penny's hands then looked at Mary, not having to say anything, already knowing that she's stay with his wife for awhile. Giving Penny a light kiss on the cheek, he walked out to the car and made his way to the first appointment of the day, and it wasn't going to be his usual case.

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"Mr. Winchester, I have a crew close by, but they already have a project and we couldn't even begin the process for another three weeks, and even then we won't be able to finish before winter hits." Seeing the shocked look on the man's face he continued, "I understand how you feel, but there is no way that we'll be able to get the permits, plumbing, and foundation poured before then."

John wasn't sure what to think. He's already got the architect's approval on all the drawings, and had even managed to take into consideration that a surveyor would need to come on board to update the title once everything was done, but he hadn't expected a delay for the permits, or a delay in getting a crew together. Sighing, he ran through his head how long it would take him to do the plumbing himself. "If I had everything ready for you to inspect the plumbing and pour the foundation, could you do that when you became available in three weeks?" He asked, hoping that he could get everything laid out and done within that time.

"Sir, if you can cut through the red tape and get the plumbing done, then yeah, my crew will make sure to have the foundation done in plenty of time for it to cure before winter takes hold."

Shaking in agreement, John walked back to the house and put together a plan of action and immediately picked up the phone to check on those permits.

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Sam had been in such a good mood, then someone started talking about Halloween, and suddenly he didn't feel so happy anymore. He like Christmas, and Easter, he even didn't mind Thanksgiving so much, but Halloween was a day that he didn't like at all; he didn't know why exactly, just that it always made him feel very uncomfortable.

Jessica had been watching Sammy all day, and she was so happy he was next to her talking and laughing. Then Jimmy Watson had to open his mouth about Halloween and she saw Sammy get quiet again. She wasn't sure how, but she knew that Sammy hated Halloween, so she spent the rest of the afternoon trying to get him to forget about ghost and goblins and worry more about his multiplication tables.

Dr. Mayfield was puzzled, she had watched Sam all day and saw that he was a happy little boy, then out of the blue he was quiet again as if someone had flipped a switch. Although Jessica Moore was determined to make sure that Sam was alright, she still vowed to call Mary later and ask her about Sam's sudden change in mood.

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Dean hated school, it was boring and he could find other things to do with his time besides sitting in a room going over the same boring things that they had learned last year. Taking a deep breath, he allowed his thoughts to wander and knew where they were going to land.

'Man, I'm such a wuss.' He thought, as his mind drifted back to being woke up by Sammy's excited squeal of "PUPPY!", which made him fall out of bed before he had a chance to remember that he had been in the middle of a really good dream.

"Mr. Winchester, I'm so sorry to intrude on your more important musings, but do you think you can spare a moment to answer the question?"

Looking up he felt his face burn red as he heard laughing and knew people were looking at him. Knowing when to pick his battles, he kept his smart aleck remark to himself for once and answered the question then smiled as he allowed his thoughts to slide back into the memory of his little brother's face as he played with the puppy.

'Oh yeah, such a wuss.'

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AN: Ok, I know it's a little slow, but I hope you enjoyed it anyway! Let me know! 


	2. Chapter 2

AN: Ok, everyone needs to know that I couldn't have gotten this chapter rolling if it wasn't for Sammygirl1967... seriously, thanks for pulling me through!

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Mary needed some time to think, she never thought she'd want that when thinking about her friends. Driving through town she noticed how stores that she had grown up going into had closed and were either something else, or just left abandoned. She remembered being a little girl and everywhere she went she had Penny by her side, a lot of people would tease them about being sisters, but that never bothered them; they'd just thank them then skip down the sidewalk as if they had been given the greatest compliment in the world.

Now though, she couldn't feel any further from Penny. After all these months of her and Jack helping them with the boys and even following when Dean and Sammy took off and ended up in California, they never once said how bad it had gotten for them here. Never once allowed them the opportunity to help. She had always thought their friendship went both ways, but now she had to wonder how far it had actually slipped away.

Noticing the time, she quickly headed to pick up Dean from school, and then they would get Sammy before heading home. 'Hopefully his first day back went well.' She thought as she pulled up in front of the middle school to let her eldest in. "Hey pal, what's with the long face?"

Dean didn't want to talk about it, at least not right now. He was still trying to sort everything out and he knew that once he did he'd be able to ask what he wanted. That was the plan anyway, and it would have worked, except suddenly the words jumped out of his mouth without his permission. "Do you think Sammy's ok without me now?" he blurted, surprised that what he had in his head had fallen out of his mouth.

Looking at Dean, Mary couldn't begin to wonder what was going on, so she did the next best thing; she asked. "What do you mean?"

Taking a deep breathe, Dean rushed into it. "Coach asked me to play basketball this season and practice starts next week but I told him that I still didn't know that I'd have to check but then I feel bad 'cause I promised Sammy I'd stay with him and not leave but if I do this then he's going to have _a lot_ of alone time and do you know how much trouble he can get into when he's alone I have no idea what I should do Mom so I need to know if Sammy's ok without me now?"

Smiling, Mary couldn't help herself but think that maybe it was actually Dean needing to make sure Sammy still needed him instead. "Dean, breathe… that's good. Now then, of course Sammy still needs you, but he also needs you to be happy. If playing basketball will make you happy, then I bet Sammy will be too. Have you asked him about this?"

"What? No way Mom… I can't lay this on Sammy. He'd say yes even if it meant he'd be miserable, that's the problem. How can we really tell if he'd be happy with the idea, and not just saying so to go along with what he thinks I want?"

Pulling in front of the school, she looked back to her son. "Then I guess that's when you just have to trust him." She said quietly then smiled as she saw Sammy race towards the car.

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John sat at the table with a note pad and a broken pencil in front of him. After spending an hour and a half on the phone, he had finally found out what happened to the new building permits he had requested and he could not believe this was happening now. After all these years, he chooses _now_ to show up and make a mess out of things? Getting up from the table he had to brace himself against the table as the black spots danced in front of him. 'Ok, major head rush.' He thought, thankful that Mary wasn't there to scold him into taking better care of himself.

Hearing the Impala stop in front of the house, he shoved the pad and pencil pieces into a kitchen catch all drawer and turned just to see Sammy run into the house calling for the puppy. "Hey Buddy, I made a pen for him in the back so he could be outside during the day when you and Dean aren't here." He said, not expecting the reaction that his son had.

Sam slid to a stop and looked at his Daddy in bewilderment, until he figured out what his Daddy said. "A pen? Like a cage? He's in a doggy jail?" he asked as his voice got more shrill by the question. Not liking that one bit, Sam quickly ran out the back door calling to the puppy the whole time.

Feeling as if he was the worst father in the world, John looked at Mary and Dean. "I just wanted to make sure he didn't get hurt before you guys got back."

Mary smiled at her husband knowing that he didn't mean to seem cruel to their little boy, but still found the whole situation amusing. "Doggy jail… oh boy, I can see we're still in for some surprises from Sammy." She said trying hard not to laugh at the expression on John's face.

"I'll go check on him. Don't worry Dad, Sammy will come around. Uh… but next time, maybe you should call it the puppy yard." Dean said as he followed in his little brother's wake.

Shaking his head, John started mumbling to himself, "Doggy jail… puppy yard… what the…"

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Dean found Sammy right where he thought, inside the pen playing with the puppy. Walking over he sat next to the fencing and watched before he asked, "So, what're you going to name it?"

"Puppy!" Sam exclaimed, excited that Puppy already knew his name.

Laughing, Dean shook his head, "No Sammy, you can't name a puppy Puppy."

Pausing for a moment, Sam looked at Dean oddly, "Why not? He knows that's his name."

Thinking about that for a minute, Dean had to wonder if that's what the puppy really thought or if… _wait a minute_. "That wasn't nice Sammy!"

Sam couldn't help but giggle, "I gotcha didn't I Dean? You thought I knew what he was thinking."

Watching his little brother this happy was really making it hard to talk to him about the decision he needed to make. As he sat there watching Sammy play with the little ball of fur, he couldn't help but wonder how many of these moments he would be missing or what if Sammy needed someone to talk to and he wasn't around? Still not sure which way he should go with it, he was about to get up when he heard Sammy.

"You'll be happy if you do, Dean. Don't worry I'll be ok, I have Mommy and Daddy, and even Puppy until your able to spend time with me again." Sammy said, giving his big brother a bright smile.

Shocked, Dean looked at Sammy, "Did you just read my mind?" he asked not sure how he was going to take having his little brother stop in uninvited whenever he wanted.

"No silly! Tonya Sanders is in my class and she said that her daddy has been trying to get you to join the basketball team, and that today he was going to ask again." Sam said very proud that he could remember that since he really didn't like Tonya or basketball.

"Oh… that's ok then. So… you wouldn't mind if I signed up?" Dean asked wondering how he would tell if he was letting his little brother down.

Shaking his head, Sam firmly told him, "No Dean, you have to do things by yourself. I'm not always going to be here, and I want you to be happy."

Nodding, Dean got up and was almost to the house when something in what Sammy said finally clicked in his head… _not always going to be here_… What the hell?!?

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Mary was trying to find the extension cord so she could use her mixer without having to move it across the room, and wasn't having any luck until she opened the top left hand drawer and reached in. 'Ah Ha!' she thought, more than a little happy that she wouldn't risk a hernia trying to lift the stupid thing. As her hand closed around it though, she felt something odd. Looking into the drawer, she saw two pieced of pencil and a pad of paper. She wouldn't have thought anything about it except for the way that John had darkened some of the notes. It wasn't until she read what it pertained to that she understood the darkened letters on the notepad, if this was true, then John was pissed!

Looking around, she found where she laid the cordless telephone and quickly got in contact with the last person John talked to in the Permits Office at City Hall. Waiting was bad enough, but then she had to suffer from the man's squeaky voice just to get confirmation. Disconnecting the call, Mary started dinner on autopilot while contemplating what this meant. Most people have nightmares then they wake up, others lived theirs; unfortunately her dear loving husband fell into the second category, and his nightmares are back!

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AN: So.. what did you think? 


	3. Chapter 3

Dean couldn't believe how much better he felt. He had just let Coach know that he'd be able to play this season, and was surprised when he made such a big deal about it. _Great news, Dean! Now I know we'll get to the Championships with you on board!_ Dean had to admit that he had been wanting to play all along, but the thought of letting his brother down was the main contributing factor of why he had hesitated.

Thinking of Sammy made him smile; especially remembering him at breakfast asking where cereal came from. 'Most kids ask about babies, but not my Sammy… cereal, what a freak!' he thought while smirking at himself. Walking through the halls to get to his locker he was lost in his own thoughts and didn't realize that someone was talking to him.

"Dean…DEAN!!!"

Being yanked out of his own little bubble, it took a moment to come back to the here and now to see Molly Peterson standing in front of him looking greatly amused.

"About time! You know, it's a good thing you weren't driving right now, you could have _killed_ someone!" she spewed rolling her eyes as she talked.

Dean didn't really like Molly, mainly because she was a know it all who liked to talk… _a lot_. However, that's also the reason why he kept her as a friend, because if she _didn't_ know it, then it wasn't important. Watching her right now told him several things, the first being that she had something on her mind; the other was that she was itching to get it out. "Hey Molly, uh… why would a 13 year old be driving anyway?

Rolling her eyes at him again, she retorted, "It was just an example Dean, an _ex…amp…le_. Jeez, you really need to learn to lighten up."

Amazed that he had kept his patience this long, he finally turned his full attention to her. "Ok Molly, what is it that has you bouncing in your shoes?"

Molly smiled then smirked, "Looks like someone's grandpa's moved into town and is already making a name for himself."

Confused, Dean continued to look at her as if she still had something to say. "Your grandpa Dean…your Dad's dad… come on, I know you're a little slow sometimes but I really thought you'd be able to follow _this_." She said as if she didn't see his honest bewilderment of what she was telling him.

"Look Molly, obviously one of your _sources_ was wrong this time. My Dad's father died years ago, before I was born." He said, trying to get rid of the cold chill that had just run down his spine.

"Uh uh… Mr. Jacob Daniel Winchester moved into town a couple of weeks ago and has been making the rounds in telling people about how it breaks his heart to hear about how your dad is spreading lies about him."

Puzzled, Dean thought a moment, then bypassed his locker to run outside. He had to get to his dad… fast!

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Sam was waiting in the school yard, watching his friends go home with their parents. He knew that his Daddy and Dean would pick him up, but was getting worried because they seemed to be running late. Sitting on the steps, he was watching an ant scurry across the concrete when a shadow overshadowed his. Looking up he was surprised that it wasn't his family, but some man who had the same hair and eyes as his Daddy.

"Hello boy, you must be Sammy. I've heard a great deal about you, yes, a great deal. Say, you wouldn't mind if I sit next to you and keep you company would you?"

Looking around he noticed that almost everyone had already gone home, and the teacher was talking to a parent by the fence. Not liking the man, but not wanting to be impolite, he simply stated, "I'm not supposed to talk to strangers."

The sound of the man laughing loudly echoed off the school building and throughout the yard causing the teacher to notice and walk over. "Sammy, is everything alright?" she asked knowing that the little boy was acting more shy than normal.

Sam shook his head slightly and was just about to answer when the man cut him off, "Of course everything's alright; just a grandpa getting acquainted with his grandson is all."

Seeing that the man wasn't lying, but knowing that he wasn't supposed to talk to strangers, Sam felt very uncomfortable with the whole situation. He was spared having to make the tough choice when a voice boomed across the yard.

"GET AWAY FROM HIM YOU SON OF A…"

"DAD!"

"Daddy… Dean!" Sam squealed as he ran to his brother and watched his Daddy take the man and shove him into the wall. From what he saw, it scared him so much he buried his face into Dean's jacket.

John knew he had been running late, it was one of those things that kept running through his head as he pulled up to pick Dean up. Normally it wouldn't have been a big deal, but then again 'normal' didn't seem to be in their vocabulary anymore. Not even coming to a complete stop, Dean had managed to jump into the passenger seat and yell "Drive Dad!", before he could remember that he wasn't in the Marines anymore and didn't have to automatically obey an order. That was until Dean told him about Jacob Winchester being in town and the whole town was getting to know him, and wouldn't you know on top of that Dean gets the feeling that Sammy's getting nervous; _real_ nervous. Now though, as he's running up towards his youngest son, he sees his worst nightmare in broad daylight; one of his children was dangerously close to his father.

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Jack sat in his office feeling more than a little overwhelmed. He should never have doubted John, his friend had said he would help, and he came through. Knowing that he should call Penny and let her know that things should be better soon, he sat at his desk thinking about the last couple of days.

The hateful and threatening letters had seemed to increase in volume as well as intensity, they had to not only screen the calls; but make sure that the answering machine was on low so the girls wouldn't here some of the vile things that were being said, the repeated vandalism to his office had gotten so bad that he had to resort to a guard at night. All of that was something that was difficult to live with, but then the terrorism to the family stretched out to Penny's parents on their farm.

Now though there was a chance that this would all be over soon. Apparently John had gotten hold of the reporter who had wrote the damaging article to begin with, and after explaining the situation had pointed the man to the right direction in finding corroborating evidence. Now the man who practically ruined him and was responsible for turning many of the townspeople against his family, was going to be the one to help them get things back to the way it was. It was still amazing to him how John was able to get the man's attention when that's all he had been trying to do for the days in between the article and going in search for the boys. 'Maybe it's that Winchester charm.' He thought to himself. 'Nah!'

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Mary knew that John was upset with everything that was going on, and there wasn't much she could do to help except insist that she get out of the house; for his sanity as well as hers. Sighing she knew that he would probably be a few minutes late to pick up Dean, but it couldn't be helped; he needed to go to the permit office in person and resubmit his applications. She still couldn't believe that after all this time that _man_ had the audacity to show up here and try to mess things up for her husband.

Thinking about how John grew up made her cringe. She couldn't imagine not having a loving family or feeling unsafe in your own home, but her husband did. Which is one of the reasons why he agreed to be a foster family, so he could help as many children as he could find a safe place of their own. Thinking about that easily brought her mind to Sammy and how she was sure that John's memories were the reason why he and their little boy bonded so quickly. Dean had been a quiet boy, only starting to talk after a couple of weeks, and then he still wouldn't interact with people until he had too. It had taken John quite awhile to get Dean to trust him, and now there wasn't anyone on the planet that the boy trusts more; well, maybe Sammy.

Looking at her notes, she continued to review what she had already found out. John's father was in town, he had been going to the places that they would normally go, talked to the people that they normally casually socialize with; apparently he was staying away from people they were really close to. Obviously he'd had them watched and or followed; the question was – for how long. Then a horrible thought came to her: _Oh my God… Sammy!_

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"Johnnieboy! How good to see you! What no hug? I wouldn't expect anything else from an ungrateful brat like you." Jacob Winchester sneered, looking at John with contempt.

John looked at the man who spent too many hours making his and his brothers lives hell. This person didn't deserve the respect of staying silent, of trying to keep the peace. "Don't EVER come close to my kids again you bastard, do you hear me? I find out that you did, and I'll scrag your ass!"

Before anyone had a chance to respond, he turned quickly snatched Sammy from Dean and into his arms and walked quickly away knowing that his eldest was right behind him.

"Daddy, who was the bad man?" Sam asked wanting to understand what he saw and why.

John didn't answer, because to do so would bring up too many memories, that he wasn't sure he could deal with again. 'Damn it, I thought I was over this.' He thought, knowing that his boys deserved an answer.

Sitting Sammy on the hood of the Impala, John looked at both of his boys. "That man was my father Sammy, and you're right he's a bad man. I haven't seen him since I left home and joined the Marines. Did he hurt you?"

Sam shook his head before answering, "No, Daddy, he didn't hurt me. He wanted to sit next to me but I said that I didn't talk to strangers, but he laughed at me. Daddy, was he going to hurt me?" Sam asked, looking between his brother and Daddy. When there was no response he whispered, "Daddy, you scared me."

Shocked, John stood there and looked at his youngest son then asked, "Sammy, how did I scare you? Was it because I yelled?"

Shaking his head, Sam looked up at his Daddy with tears in his eyes, "No Daddy, your colors changed… _a whole lot_." Then, unable to hold back anymore, he started crying.

Picking his little boy up, John tried to comfort him, but had the feeling that his own turbulent emotions weren't helping Sammy at all. Finally he gave the little boy to Dean and helped them into the car. Pulling onto the road he could only hope that his two boys' connection could help right now, because the way Sammy had been crying; it sounded like his heart was breaking in two. 'I can't hurt my kids, I won't.' he thought with determination as they made their way back home to the one person who could help him figure this out.

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AN: Hope you like it... let me know! 


	4. Chapter 4

AN: Hope you all have had a wonderful day!

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Mary knew something had happened as soon as she looked out the door and saw her men walking towards her. John looked upset, Dean looked worried, and Sammy had obviously been crying for quite awhile. As soon as they got in the house, she ushered them to the table and quickly poured milk for the boys and coffee for John. She had no sooner sat down herself when Sammy broke the silence and in a rushed manner told her everything that had happened, making her wonder how he could say all that without pausing for air.

John listened as Sammy went into detail about his encounter with the person who insisted was his grandpa, and knew that his son had felt like he was caught between a rock and a hard place with what he knew and what he had been told. Sighing, he nodded his head. "It's true Mary, he was there and was sitting right next to our Sammy. He could have…" he couldn't finish. Instead he reached for his coffee, then changed his mind and went outside.

"Mommy… was I bad?" Sam asked, not sure why his Daddy was upset, but wanted to make sure he didn't do it again.

Shocked, Mary looked over at Dean first then to Sammy, "No baby, you did everything right. You knew that you weren't supposed to talk to strangers and you didn't. Don't worry; Daddy's not upset with you, ok?"

Thinking this new piece of information over, Sammy finally nodded then followed his Daddy outside, leaving his Mommy and Dean in the kitchen to watch. Walking over to where his Daddy was sitting, Sam gave him a hug around the neck. "It's going to be ok Daddy."

John didn't know how far he had let himself fall into self pity until Sammy hugged him and made him feel as if everything was alright again. Taking his little boy onto his lap, they sat back and enjoyed what they had. That was something that Sammy had taught him; enjoy it while you have it.

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Jacob Winchester couldn't help but smile at the latest turn of events. He had finally seen his son after all of these years, and he could still quickly turn the boy into mush. He knew that it wouldn't take much to send his son down a dark path, and he was just the person to get the ball rolling. Now all he had to do was decide which boy to use as bait.

Having been in town the last couple of weeks had given him an advantage. Now he knew all there was to know about John Winchester, including that the house he was currently living in wasn't really his, but the youngest boy's. That had made him laugh out loud at the knowledge that his had to have a small fry keep his family sheltered. 'So much for being a better father than me.' He thought snidely, remembering the day that John had left home to join the Marines in the middle of a God forsaken war. Now he wished that he could turn back time and kick the boy's head in to stop the mess he had created.

Everything had been fine for awhile, there wasn't anyone arguing with him about how he should do things, or how bad they had it, or even that he should get up and get a job. Then the cops showed up at his door at three in the morning demanding to speak to his other sons. If only he could have done it over, he would have made that boy pay more than he already had. Of course though, that's why he was here now; paybacks a bitch!

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Dean had made sure to spend extra time with Sammy through the rest of the week and the weekend so he wouldn't feel so bad when he wasn't there because of basketball practice. He had been thinking about this season all week and his dad had even put up a basketball goal so he and Sammy could shoot hoops whenever they wanted. He knew that Sammy was only humoring him, and he felt the love he had for his little brother grow just for that reason. He knew that no matter what he wanted to do, his little Sammy would be there with him cheering him on.

So why was he thinking about being at home with his family when he should be concentrating on the drills that the Coach was calling. 'Talk about conflicted.' He thought as he dribbled back to the center and drove the ball back down the court to finish with a pass to another teammate. Knowing that he had another hour until practice ended, Dean was trying hard to stay focused, but the more he tried the more Sammy's face popped into his head. 'Yep, a complete and total wuss.'

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John knew that Sammy was tired, and it was starting to worry him. After the incident with his own father he noticed how Sammy would just drop off for a quick nap without warning. He and Mary both wondered if he was just going through a growth spurt, and if so he'd be back to his energetic self in no time. Thinking about that made him laugh. If it wasn't for the puppy to help Sammy channel his energy then both he and Mary would be in trouble trying to keep up with the boy.

Shaking his head, John wondered at the amazing boy in front of him. Sammy was a definite contradiction. He was either going full blast, a true force of nature, or he was so still, concentrating on a project or book, that you'd think he was a statue. Knowing that having the boy help him dig for the plumbing into the shop wasn't the most brilliant idea he'd had, but he was still pleasantly surprised that Sammy would still smile up at him even when he was covered in dirt and totally exhausted.

"Hey Sammy, what do you say we get cleaned up and go get Dean? Maybe even stop off for a burger or something on the way back?" he asked watching for Sammy's reaction. He was pleasantly surprised when his little boy cheered and scrambled out of the trench that they were widening. They had been lucky enough to rent a backhoe on short notice, the drawback was it had been reserved to be rented later that same day. So now he and Sammy had to finish what the machine had crudely started. Not that he was complaining, every minute with his little boy made him feel better.

As they both walked into the house Mary started to laugh. Seeing them both covered in dirt from head to toe was a sight. After an excited Sammy told her about going to get hamburgers, she looked up at John with reproach. "Hmmm… I think you forgot to tell someone about that." She said, waiting for him to catch on.

"Uh, of course if dinner's already made…" he started realizing the corner he had painted himself into.

Laughing, Mary shook her head, "Nope… in fact, I already called Jack and Penny and we all are going out to eat. So, you both need to hurry up and take a bath, Dean gets out of practice in an hour.

Sammy was already climbing up into the loft to get his clothes by the time John knew what was happening. Looking at Mary he waited for an answer to his unspoken question. "Well, since he doesn't like being alone, and it's bath time I either read to him or…." She paused, looking at him knowing what he wanted, "or I let the puppy keep him company."

John was sure he misunderstood, "The puppy keeps him company? Ok… that's not so bad, the puppy has toys to stay occupied and Sammy's not…"

"No John… keep him company in the tub." She said knowing what his reaction would be.

"You have got to be kidding me, right? That totally defeats the purpose of taking a bath!" he said, trying hard not to raise his voice, but not fully understanding what was going on.

Smiling, Mary motioned to the top of the loft. "It's ok Daddy, the puppy comes in with me, then after I get all soapy, Mommy helps me with the shower so I can wash my hair too, but I get too much shampoo in my hair and I have to wash it off anyways." Sammy said sounding a little depressed that he basically takes two baths at a time now.

Looking back at Mary, John was amazed at his wife. "What? Can I help it if there's just _way_ too much soap?" she asked him with an innocent look, which made him laugh. _Right, he just happens to get too much soap in his hair._

John looked back at Sammy and smiled, "That's ok, sometimes Mommy has to help me get the extra soap out of my hair too." He told his little boy, not missing the aghast look on his wife's face.

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Dean had already taken a shower right after practice, mainly because he couldn't stand the smell of himself and the other lesser known reason was because he didn't want to miss out on any time for Sammy. He knew that his dad and brother were going to be working on the trenches for the piping today, and that Sammy would more than likely drop off early tonight; which made him doubly want to spend as much time as possible with the little guy. Sighing, he looked at the clock and saw that he was running late; they were going to pick him up ten minutes ago.

Running outside he saw the familiar Impala and two occupants inside. Frowning he made his way to the car and peeked into the backseat and saw his little brother sound asleep. "Gee Dad, worked him a little hard there?" he asked as he slid into the backseat and played with Sammy's hair.

Laughing, John only shook his head and pulled onto the street towards the diner. They had just pulled into the parking lot before he saw they had been followed. Telling Mary to get the boys inside quickly, he got out and faced their pursuer. "Leave us alone old man! What you got, you deserved; don't even think about bringing my family into this." He growled, looking at his father with fury and hate.

Jacob smiled then laughed, "You think I'm going to just let by gones be by gones boy? Well, I have to say, the Marines really helped you grow some balls, didn't they? Nothing will make up for what you took from me, but that doesn't mean I won't find a way to collect. You go on now and enjoy your dinner with your nice _family_, we'll see each other again."

John watched his father get in his truck and drive off. The more he thought about what that man could do to one of his children, his wife, it made him sick thinking about it. Staving off the black spots that threatened to overcome his senses, he made his way inside to try and salvage the rest of the evening.

"Daddy! It was that bad man again, wasn't it?" Sammy cried out as he hugged John's waist. It took everything in him not to pick his boys up and rush home, but he wouldn't let them see his fear. Taking a deep breath, he lifted Sammy's face up to look at him. "Hey, don't worry kiddo… you've faced bigger and badder men than him, right?" he waited a moment before continuing, "So, you don't have to be afraid of him, ok?"

Sam looked at his daddy and didn't know what to say. He knew he was being lied to, but if a lie was for a good reason, then was it really bad? Not sure what to say he finally compromised, "I know that you'll protect us Daddy."

Hearing that from his little boy made him swell with pride. He hadn't missed the thoughtful look on Sammy's face, and had a suspicion that his son once again proved just how smart he really is, but the faith on his son's face helped him remove any doubts that he may have had. He wasn't a boy anymore, he was a man who was able to protect his family; there was no way he would let them down this time.

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AN: So, how'd you like it? 


	5. Chapter 5

AN: Ok, I know it's short, but I'll update again soon... I promise!

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Looking around the table, Mary could only say that she was surprised. Normally, Sammy would be situated between Jessica and Dean, leaving everyone else to fall in around them. Tonight however her little boy very boldly stated that he wanted to 'sit next to Daddy', and there didn't seem to be anything anyone could do about it. So, with Sammy sitting next to John, the rest kind of sat around them watching as the little boy looked as if he was going to fall asleep any moment.

Dean was getting worried. Lately Sammy had been taking small naps for no reason and when he woke he usually looked more tired than when he dozed off to begin with. Sighing, he looked at his little brother and hoped that he wasn't getting sick, he didn't think that anyone could handle that right now. They'd just got the little guy happy and healthy from the latest drama involving the family. He was glad that Sammy still let him sit next to him at the table, otherwise he would really have been jealous. It was supposed to be him and Sammy, no one else… not even their dad.

Sam was sleepy, he knew why but he didn't want anyone to know. He just hoped it was enough, and that the bad man wouldn't ruin everything. He loved his family and would do anything to protect them; _anything_!

John sat, with Sammy nestled at his side, knowing that he was getting glared at from his other son and couldn't help but smirk at the thought of Dean being jealous. Continuing the conversation with Jack and Penny, he was sure that everything was going to work out for his friends. They had just read the new article that talked about Jack's Marine record and service to their country, and that the previous information had been a mistake. Now all they could hope for was that people would accept it.

Penny was excited that they were all together, relaxing again; it had been way too long. Feeling that they had waited long enough, she looked over to Mary and John. "Well, now that we have shared that, we were wondering what you all were doing for Halloween? If you don't have plans, we were going to take the girls to the farm for a hayride and bonfire."

Looking at the girls John and Mary could see how much they wanted Dean and Sammy to join them, Dean was trying not to look enthused but they could tell he was at least a little intrigued, their biggest surprise came from Sammy.

"Don' wanna go!" he mumbled into John's shirt.

Not sure that they heard correctly, they all pitched in with their opinions about what they would be able to do on the farm and how much fun everyone would have. They were shocked by his outburst of "NO!", making many of the diner's occupants turn and stare.

Knowing that there had to be something wrong for their little boy to act that way, John quickly pulled Sammy closer to him and whispered in his ear. "It's ok buddy, no one's going to hurt you. Dean will be there, so will Jessica and Mariah."

Sam shook his head and whispered back, "But you won't be Daddy, you'll be gone."

Smiling, John looked at Sammy, "I'll be here when you get back, kiddo. Don't worry so much."

Looking around the table he saw everyone watching him, waiting for his answer. Not wanting to let Dean down, he let out a small sigh and nodded before he burrowed his head back into his daddy's shirt, letting his silent tears fall.

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Jacob Winchester had plenty of time to think about how he was going to pay his son back for sending him to prison, and every idea he had involved agonizing pain. Now though, that he's found his son's weakness, he knew that he could inflict greater pain and get his revenge. At first he thought about using the older boy, but since he actually sat down and talked to young Sammy he was having second thoughts. It would come down to which one would inflict the greater damage.

Smiling, he sat back and relished in the plan that was starting to unfold. All it would take was a couple of days with the boy in and unknown location, a couple of pictures sent to the boy's daddy, and then maybe just maybe he'd let the boy go… one…piece…at…a…time.

Oh yes, Johnnieboy was going to pay.

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Dean had never been upset with his little brother before, but this morning kept replaying in his head, and he couldn't let it go. It had taken him and both their parents to get Sammy ready and out the door this morning, mainly because he was acting like a royal brat! It had never been difficult to get Sammy ready for school, but as soon as he heard that Aunt Penny would pick them up and take them straight to the farm had flipped a switch in his little brother turning the normal calm happy boy into something that reminded him of a horror movie.

Looking at the time, he knew that he was in for another round when Aunt Penny picked them up in half an hour. Sighing, he looked back at the chalkboard and tried to concentrate on the math equations, but felt more like the images were mocking him. He just hoped that Sammy would behave himself while they were on the hayride.

Sam was upset, he knew he should stay home, but no one wanted him too. They all wanted him to have fun with Jessica's family. He hated Halloween, and he knew that by the end of the night, he would hate it even more.

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AN: So, what'd you think? 


	6. Chapter 6

AN: As promised... another update, hope you enjoy!

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John had been having a rough day and he knew exactly when it started; getting Sammy ready for school. He'd always known him to be a sweet loving little boy, so the person from this morning was definitely a stranger. Sighing he continued to look over the plans for the garage and started to feel more frustrated than ever. People used to ask him about taking a vacation, but John had found out a long time ago that working on cars wasn't a job to him but a exercise in relaxation. If he had a problem that he couldn't work through, he'd tinker with the Impala or someone else's car and the answer usually came to him; and if not, he felt better about it and was able to accept whatever the issue initially was at the time. However, right now he didn't have that luxury. Right now he could feel the pressure of not being able to work building up and he didn't have a way to release it. It was becoming a never ending cycle… he needed a shop to work on cars, the shop wasn't being built, he had no cars to work on to work through his next step. To really throw a wrench in the works, his father was back to wreck havoc.

Thinking back on the times that he'd seen his father so close to his family, he couldn't help the fear that gripped him. Knowing that he needed to push it out of his mind, he started making notes again, throwing the old ones into the pile that was accumulating by the small waste basket in the corner.

Mary watched her husband and knew that he was getting too wound up, it wasn't like him not to have patience with the boys, but then again Sammy was being more than a little hand full today. She couldn't get the picture of all of them having to pull him out of the house and into the car, all the while him screaming "I HAVE TO STAY WITH DADDY!" It made her worry on some sort of level, but then again, she knew that Sammy and John had been spending a lot of extra time together lately, so she shouldn't have been surprised when their little boy decided to take it a step further and crank up his clinginess. Smiling, she watched John toss another piece of paper towards the waste basket. 'He needs to get this shop built before he drives me crazy.' She mused, watching as yet another wad went sailing. 'Soon!'

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Sam didn't want to go with Jessica and Mariah to their grandparent's farm, even though he would get to pet a lot of animals. He still had something very important to do, but no one seemed to want to listen. He told them that he needed to stay with his Daddy, but they wouldn't let him, even Daddy yelled at him this morning. Thinking about it made him sad, but he knew that his family didn't mean to make him feel bad. He just wished that he knew how to tell them, but then he'd get in trouble and he'd already been bad when he hurt his Daddy from before.

Sighing, he sat back against the seat in Aunt Penny's car and tried to ignore the looks that Dean kept giving him. Jessica was trying to ask him something, but it was hard to hear her when all he could hear was the pounding in his ears. Not wanting to make anyone else mad, he closed his eyes and tried to go to sleep.

Penny had heard about Sam's morning meltdown, and she had to admit; she was surprised. Sam was the one child that they all could count on not to act like a brat. Although, everyone is allowed a bad day every now and again, that's what she kept telling herself all the while hoping that this wasn't a preview of what was to come. Looking in the rearview mirror again, she saw that Sam was leaning back trying to sleep, but it had to be difficult with the girls chattering in his ear. Smiling, Penny knew that this trip out to the farm would do the little boy a world of good, she just knew it!

Dean couldn't understand it, usually he knew exactly how Sammy was feeling, but now he had no clue. This morning their parents had looked to him to help decipher Hurricane Sammy, but had no idea what to tell them. It was almost as if Sammy had turned that special parts of them off, how, he had no idea. Looking back to see his little brother, he could tell that Sammy was trying to ignore him, but there was something else; almost as if Sammy was sad, but he couldn't think of anything that Sammy would be sad about. Shaking his head, he could only hope that his little brother wouldn't ruin the evening for all of them.

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Jack and Penny watched as the kids played with the smaller animals close to the house, waiting for the bonfire to take hold to start roasting marshmallows. Penny's father had to break the news that they wouldn't be able to have a hayride afterall; the tractor broke down and the part needed had to be ordered. At first the girls were upset, but then they all noticed that Sammy had been playing with the kittens and hadn't even noticed what was going on. So instead of sulking, they had a new obsession; make Sammy smile.

Worried, Penny looked at Jack hoping that he could shed some light on what was going on with the little boy, unfortunately he didn't have any idea either. They both watched as Jessica fixed Sammy a hotdog, but the boy didn't even look at it, and everyone noticed that Dean wasn't leaving his little brother's side. No, tonight was definitely wasn't going according to plan.

"Maybe we should cut the evening short." Jack said, "It's obvious that Sam's not ready to be in a different environment without Mary or John."

Penny looked at her husband in shock, she knew that he had some stern ideas about how he felt about Sammy, but she hadn't known that it was going to carry over to something as innocent as the little boy playing with a bunch of bundles of fur. "Jack, no… I really think it's…" anything else she was going to say was cut off by the sound of the phone in the house and her mother calling out the window.

"Penny! It's for you, it's Mary!"

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"John, since the boys are gone, I thought we could enjoy an evening by going into town and have an actual date… you know, dinner, movie… me?" Mary asked as she took the pencil from John's hand. "Come on, you can always get back to that when we get back."

Smiling, John looked up at Mary, "I guess I have been a little obsessed, haven't I?" he asked. As he looked around, he noticed that it had gotten dark outside, and that made him wonder how the boys were. Shaking his head, he quickly brought himself back to the here and now. "You know, it has been awhile since it's been just the two of us. How about we go to that new restaurant that opened up, it's supposed to be pretty good."

Mary saw the look on John's face and thought 'Finally, now maybe we can relax a little.'

Half an hour later they were being seated at a table in the middle of the new restaurant _Rosalind's_, and they were enjoying every minute of it. The evening was shaping up nicely with the two of them acting like teenagers on their first date; holding hands, exchanging small smiles at each other, making the wait staff more determined to make sure that the cute couple at table three had the best night possible.

"Hey there boy, I figured you'd be out with those brats of your trick or treating."

Turning around, John and Mary saw Jacob sneering at them not caring who saw or heard what was going on. "Get away from my wife." John growled as he got up from the table and faced his father.

"Or what boy? You going to fight your old man like you should have years ago?" laughed Jacob as he looked around the restaurant. "Did you hear that everyone? He thinks he can take his old man, now doesn't that just bring tears to your eyes?"

John knew that he shouldn't rise to the bait, but Mary was caught in the middle between him and his father and there was no way he was going to let her get hurt. "I told you before to leave my family alone, I suggest you do that." He said, trying to rein in his temper, but noticing that his vision was getting spotty and there was nothing that he seemed to be able to do to stop it.

The manager walked over and pointedly told Jacob to leave, the police would be called if he didn't do so immediately. Jacob however looked at the man and chuckled, "Don't worry, I wouldn't want to dirty myself with the company." He said as he turned towards the door.

"John, are you ok?" Mary asked, concerned because her husband had gotten very quiet and had a pained look on his face.

"Mary?" John asked right before he passed out and fell to the floor.

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AN: how'd you like it? Let me know! 


	7. Chapter 7

The ER was busy with small children who had already gotten too sick on candy; however Dr. Lucas wasn't concerned with them at the moment. Less then ten minutes ago a man was brought in being resuscitated in route and they were still having trouble bringing him back. Normally he wouldn't think twice about all the tests he was running on his patient, however this patient was different; this patient was John Winchester, and if he didn't get those results back soon, he knew that John might not make it through the night.

Mary had insisted on riding in the ambulance with John, she had watched in horror as they had to repeatedly shock him back to life and inject medicine straight into his heart, now she was alone waiting to find out if he was going to be alright, or if she was already a widow. Thinking of the boys, she decided to wait until she knew something before calling Penny, hoping to have good news instead of relaying the horror show that she witnessed. Sitting down in the plastic chair closest to the doors she saw John disappear behind, she waited, counting the moments that had gone from wonderful to horrible. Praying that her family was still intact, it only took her a moment to replay the day in her head from the time that she got the boys up and ready for school, the wresting match to get Sammy to go to… 'Oh Sammy' she thought, feeling awful that she hadn't picked up that he had known something was going to happen.

It had taken a lot longer than Damon liked, but they were able to get John stable – for now. He was more than a little concerned about what the results were showing, but more so he was concerned on how the tight nit family was going to take the news. Walking out into the waiting room he looked for Mary and saw her immediately. Guiding her to John's room in CICU, he sat next to her and refused to sugar coat it to the same woman who could keep the men in her life in line.

"Mary, as you know John suffered a major heart attack. We can't find any blockage, which leads me to believe that he's been having trouble with his blood pressure. Has there been any _abnormal_ stress lately, something that would make him more tense than usual?" he asked knowing full well that there wasn't anything about this family that could even remotely be described as normal.

Nodding, Mary explained about the new shop and then the reappearance of his father. "He had mentioned heartburn the other night, but he promised me that he would get a check up if it happened again. Damon, what are his chances as of right now? Is he going to be ok?" she asked watching the irregular rhythm of her husband's heartbeat on the monitor.

"I'm afraid not Mary. Normally I wouldn't have a pessimistic view, but this was major and even if he does pull through tonight there's no guarantee of how long his heart will continue to function. The cardiologist has already looked at the echocardiogram and is amazed that he's still with us. I'm truly sorry Mary; I know how close you and John are."

Mary walked over and leaned to whisper in John's ear, "Don't you dare give up on me Winchester, or so help me there _will_ be hell to pay." Turning back to Damon she firmly said, "I need to call the boys, I'll be right back and I _will_ be staying with him tonight."

Smiling, Damon could only agree and then watched as Mary walked towards the waiting room thinking that John was truly a lucky man. "John, I know you don't like being told what to do, but I strongly advise you find some way to pull out of this." He told his patient and friend, then watched as the man before him started to slip away from them even more.

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Penny was actually thankful that Mary had called, because the way Jack was acting was making her extremely angry. 'As if that sweet little boy can help being clingy right now.' She thought distractedly before she picked up the phone from the counter. "Mary! How's the night out? I bet that…. What!?!... no… are you… yes, of course we'll bring them right away!" she said as she was already looking for her purse and car keys. Hanging up the phone, she ran out of the house yelling for Jack.

The ride to the hospital was an extremely tense and subdued one. Dean was holding his little brother who was crying so hard he could barely breathe, while Jack concentrated on not running into any late night trick or treaters still out on the streets. Penny was feeling miserable thinking about how many problems had cropped up for their friends lately, and couldn't help but wonder if this would be the last straw for the family.

Finally getting to the hospital, they saw Damon waiting for them at the main entrance and led them to the CICU's waiting room to explain the situation. A nurse was called to send for Mary so the boys would have her to help explain and answer any questions. After everyone was filled in, the small group was silent except for a crying Sammy who couldn't seem to get his tears under control.

"Baby, are you ok?" Mary asked, knowing that their little Sammy was the more sensitive one of the bunch.

Sam launched himself into his Mommy's arms and cried out, "It's my fault, I should have stayed… I should have stayed."

Shocked, Mary pulled away just enough to look at her little boy. "It's not your fault Sammy, we didn't listen. We've all been running around out of sync lately and didn't see that you might have picked up on something that we hadn't yet. Ok? Sammy, look at me…" she turned his face to look at hers. "Sammy, it's not your fault. Now, I want you and Dean to go and grab a soda from the machine and sit down for awhile, we're all in for a rough night."

Dean gladly took Sammy down the hall; he needed a distraction from his thoughts. Finally finding a working machine, Dean put the money in and nudged Sammy slightly. "Hey look Sammy… they have grape, how about we get that this time and root beer the next, ok?" he asked already seeing that his little brother was a million miles away. Opening the can, he led Sammy off to the side so he could talk to him. "Sammy, I need the truth. Did you know something was going to happen to dad? Is that why you were acting like a brat this morning?" he asked, and seeing the expression on the little boy's face he got all the confirmation he needed. "I'm so sorry Sammy, I should have known something was wrong, but with worrying about dad's father showing up and then making the team on top of everything else, I sort of forgot how special you really are."

Sam looked at Dean in disbelief, "You're not mad at me Dean?"

Shaking his head, Dean reached out and wiped the tears from Sammy's face. "Not even a little bit. This isn't your fault, and I want you to promise that you won't think it is anymore. Deal?" he asked, waiting for Sammy to agree before he allowed his little brother to share the soda.

Walking back to the waiting room they heard Jack and Mary arguing with Damon and Penny trying to referee.

"I don't think that it's a good idea Mary. Sam's in a fragile state right now, if he sees John like this…."

"He might not get a chance to see him any other way Jack, you need to give Sammy the chance to say goodbye."

"In my professional opinion…"

"I don't give a _damn_ about your professional anything… ever since we got back from California you've made it clear about what you think of …"

"That's not fair, Mary. I just see things a little differently…"

Dean rushed forward, "Hell yeah you do! Mom, he wanted to bring us home because Sammy was playing with the kittens instead of acting like he thought Sammy should!" he yelled at his Uncle Jack, enjoying the look of discomfort on the man's face.

"Jack, is this true? You were just going to bring him home not even caring if there was a reason…"

"Mary, I've already discussed this with John. I don't think that Sammy's ready to be interacting with a bunch of people, he often withdraws into himself, and totally looks toward you, John and Dean for indications on how he's supposed to act. He has no sense of independence at all…"

"Uh, I hate to interrupt, but we have a problem." Damon said; glad to disrupt the argument that was escalating. When he had everyone's attention he motioned around them. "Where's Sam?"

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Sam knew he was a good hider if he really wanted to, so he made sure that he was able to sneak into his Daddy's room without anyone seeing. Somehow he knew that the argument outside was about him being able to see his Daddy, and he wasn't going to let anyone keep him away; not this time. Walking towards the bed, he saw his Daddy with a bunch of wires attached to him and an IV attached to his hand. What disturbed Sam the most though was how pale he looked. Sam was worried he was already too late, but then he saw the squiggly lines on the screen and knew that was his Daddy's heart, but didn't think that it was supposed to look like that.

Climbing onto the bed he put his little hand on his Daddy's chest and shook him a little. "Daddy, it's Sammy, please wake up." He said, at first quietly hoping that his Daddy was just taking a nap. It wasn't until he had started to cry and calling out to his Daddy that Sam knew that something really bad was happening. Not knowing what else to so, he curled up against his Daddy's side and laid his little hand over his Daddy's heart then quickly fell asleep.

Waking up was not as easy at it usually was, and for a moment he couldn't figure out why, then the memories of the night before assailed him making him groan and call out to Mary. Feeling a slight weight by his side he forced his eyes open and saw that he was in a hospital room with enough equipment attached to him to send a message to outer space. Finally able to gather some more strength, he looked down at what was pressing against him and at first couldn't help but smile. "Sammy, hey buddy. Now's not a good time to be napping you know… Sammy? C'mon son, wake up." He pleaded with his little boy as he picked him up into his arms and yelled for help.

Damon was glad that they all were able to put aside their differences; they had an upset little boy to find. Knowing that Sam could be anywhere they were deciding who was going to check where when they heard it. A scream so desperate it almost froze Damon where he stood, until his heard the name the scream contained. As they all raced around the corner to John's room, they saw nurses running toward them with a crash cart and heard the scream again, louder more desperate.

"SSSSSSAAAAAAAAMMMMMYYY!!!!"

By the time they all slid into the room, barely beating the nurses, they saw John sitting upright holding a very limp little boy in his arms.

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AN: ok... before I get lynched...I'll try to get another chapter up today! 


	8. Chapter 8

Damon tried to push the leaden feeling in his stomach down, but couldn't seem to accomplish it. Without hesitating any further, he rushed to the bed and began examining Sam while John quickly moved out of the room.

"Unresponsive, I need a BP on him… damn, I lost him…" he called over his shoulder, knowing that the nursing staff was already getting everything ready. It took only a moment before Damon and a nurse were resuscitating little Sam while another one was placing leads on his tiny chest. Disconnecting John from the monitor, Sam was quickly hooked up and the steady tone filled the room and devastated those who heard it.

Refusing to lose this little boy, especially after everything he had been through, Damon ordered the Winchester's out into the hall then gave orders to the nurses for the defibrillator and the medicines to be injected.

Knowing that the doctor and nurses needed room to save their little boy, John conceded and led his family and friends outside the doorway, all the while watching as their little Sammy fought for his life. Needing to know what happened, but knowing that he probably already had his answer, he looked at Mary and she nodded to him with tears flowing.

"Damon said you probably wouldn't last the night, so I had Jack and Penny bring the boys. We had and argument, then we couldn't find Sammy. Now you're here in front of me and …"

Mary didn't have to finish, they all could see what was happening and they all knew how it came about. Dean's warning about them protecting Sammy from himself was coming true; the little boy had decided to help, and now it could cost him dearly.

Holding Mary close, John reached out to Dean and was surprised when he readily accepted the embrace. Normally not an emotional kid, except with Sammy, Dean had to be a wreck to accept such an open gesture from his family. They continued to listen and watch as their new friend worked hard to keep the youngest member of their family alive.

Damon saw it, but he couldn't believe it. Looking at the nurses, they seemed as stumped as he was. Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, he sighed, and covered the little boy's chest with a blanket. "You gave us a scare there kiddo."

Seeing the nurses leave and that Damon stayed behind, didn't help the Winchester's feel any better. It wasn't until Damon turned slightly and motioned them in that they all felt like they could breathe again.

Reaching to touch Sammy's face, Mary continued to cry, in one night she not only almost lost her husband, but her little boy too. Looking at Damon she asked quietly, "Is he ok, now?"

Knowing that it wouldn't be easy to hear, he slowly shook his head, "Mary, I honestly don't know. We lost him several times, and then all of a sudden he came back on his own. I've scheduled the standard tests, and with what just happened, I won't have to argue that this is an emergency case. I'm sure you are suspecting what I am, and in that case, I have no idea if the damage is permanent, or will reverse itself. Right now though, we're going to treat this like we see it; a little boy's heart stopped while napping with his dad. With your permission though, I want to bring in one of our Pediatric Cardiologist's and have her look at Sam just for a second pair of eyes."

Letting Damon go to arrange for a consultation with another doctor, the rest of the family stood next to the bed and watched the little boy in front of them breathe, but not waken. It wasn't until the technicians came to run the scheduled tests that they walked to the waiting room.

John had managed to find his clothes and get dressed, but something was niggling at his brain. "Mary, you said something about an argument. Who was arguing about what?"

Mary looked back and forth between John and Jack and couldn't have felt more like she was wedged between a rock and a hard place. If she told John, then he could easily relapse, they still didn't know if he was completely healed. If she didn't, then Jack would just assume that she 'came to her senses' and sided with him. Seriously not knowing which way to go, she was almost relieved when Dean broke the silence.

"Uncle Jack wasn't going to let Sammy see you Dad. He said that Sammy doesn't do well around people, that he was fragile, and… OH! My favorite… he didn't have any sense of independence." Dean said while looking at Jack with a look of total disgust.

John looked at Dean in disbelief, sure that his eldest had heard wrong. "Dean, I'm sure that's not what Jack said."

Dean turned around and looked John straight in the eyes, "Dad, look in my eyes and tell me I didn't understand what I heard."

Knowing that look very well having seen it pitted against school teachers and administrators alike, John looked at his friend silently demanding an explanation. When none was forthcoming, he looked at Jack and Penny before speaking. "We discussed this Jack, you have your opinion of Sammy already formed, wrapped up and a nice little bow on top. You keep forgetting that he is an eight year old little boy who has been through hell and back more times than you and I together can ever imagine. You want to talk to me about my boy, Jack?" John demanded, his voice increasing in volume as well as in depth. He couldn't help but feel as if his family had been attacked; and by his best friend no less.

Jack knew that there was no way he'd be able to argue his opinion, not when John thought one of his children had been hurt in the process. Watching the expression on his friend's face change, he looked at Penny and saw the worry in her eyes. Sighing, he nodded, "Ok John, let's talk about the kids…"

"Jack!" Penny stepped forward knowing that tempers were flaring and things would be said that weren't meant. Looking at John and Mary she smiled slightly, "We need to get back to the girls, but please let us know as soon as you hear anything about Sam."

John and Mary watched as Jack and Penny made their way to the exit and disappeared around a corner. Looking at Mary, John asked, "Was I wrong Mary? Is there something that we've been missing that only Jack can see?"

"Dad you have got to be kidding me! Sammy came to us in June, it's October now, how much more quickly does Uncle Jack expect Sammy to get settled? If Sammy was as weak as Jack seems to think, then there would be no way he'd have made it this far. Don't start doubting my little brother now Dad, not you." Dean looked between his parents and silently pleaded with them to believe him.

Smiling, John looked at Dean and agreed. "You're right Dean; I don't know what I was thinking. Sammy's been through a lot, and he wouldn't have made it to us if he wasn't a tough kid."

Letting out the breath that he'd been holding, Dean suddenly felt relieved. He wasn't sure what he would have done if their Dad had suddenly turned his back on Sammy. _Maybe Caleb would have taken them in?_

"Hey guys, I've got the preliminary results back." Damon said as he walked up to them. He watched as the small family turned to him with expectant expressions, and couldn't help but admit to himself that these people were quickly becoming his favorite patients. "Ok, he's still unconscious, but otherwise stable at the moment. There are signs of damage, but I want to give him a couple of hours and have it done again to see if he's going to pull another miracle out of his hat." Seeing how uncomfortable they were getting with the conversation, he felt he had to say something. "Look, you know I won't say anything. I truly believe he saved your life John, and I'm pretty sure you believe it too. Now we just have to bring him back and find out if it was on purpose or an accident."

Dean looked at his parents then back at Damon. "I think that this time was an accident. He'd been falling asleep a lot, and if Dad had been having problems before tonight, Sammy was probably just trying to help. I don't think that he meant to let it get this far though." Looking at his dad, Dean shrugged. "Sorry Dad, I don't mean it to sound like he wouldn't have done it if he'd known…"

"You just think that with everything else going on and him getting upset, instead of doing it slow, he fell asleep and took it all." John finished, understanding his son's reasoning. Seeing Dean's nod, he quickly said a prayer of Thanks to whoever was listening that he had woken when he had.

"Ok you three, I'm happy that we have that all straightened out, now my question is: are they out of Sammy's room so I can go back in to my baby?" Mary demanded feeling as if she was in withdraws from being away from her little boy so long.

Nodding, Damon led them into the room. "The staff has been advised that you all will be here and to not disturb you unless they have to. I'll check on Sam myself every chance I get, and if anything happens in between times, you know how to get hold of me."

Dean had already settled in next to his brother, situating the small body so Sammy's head lay on his shoulder and his little hand rested on his stomach. Lying there, he was thankful of every heartbeat and breath that he felt against him. Smiling, Dean started whispering to his little brother about what they would do as soon as they were back home.

Mary and John took up the same position they had the last time their Sammy was in the hospital, John holding Mary close; both watching over their boys.

Damon watched for a moment knowing that as long as this family had each other, then everything would be alright. Smiling gently, he quietly left the family to bring their youngest back to them.

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AN: Hope you enjoyed, let me know!!!


	9. Chapter 9

Penny was upset, no… that wasn't right, she was furious at her husband. This was the second time in a month that he had referred to little Sam as some pathetic little boy who couldn't deal with living, much less make a decision on his own. She knew that Jack was oblivious which was completely ironic considering that the man is a Psychiatrist for goodness sake. Looking over at him, she finally had enough. "Pull over!" she demanded, daring him to ask why.

"What? Why honey, are you ok?" Jack asked concerned that maybe Penny was starting to get ill.

"Why? I'll tell you why, you either pull over or I'll make sure to toss your body on the road out of town!" she exclaimed, sure that she sounded as maniacal as she felt.

Shocked, Jack pulled the car over and looked at Penny. "We're not even a mile from your parents…"

"Shut up! Do you even hear yourself anymore? You used to be kind and understanding. Now all you worry about is what other people are talking about. Do you know how Sammy felt after hearing you say that, not once but _twice_? No! Don't interrupt me, not now. I'm right, and when you decide to pull your head out of your ass, you'll realize it too. Until then, you can stay at the house. I'm staying with my parents and the girls on the farm."

Jack sat there stunned watching his wife slam the car door and march up the road to her parent's house. Replaying the events leading to this all he could think to say was, "Well, hell."

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Sam wasn't sure where he was, but he was worried. He couldn't open his eyes but all he could think about was his Daddy. He heard Dean talking to him, but had no idea what was being said, it was as if his brain had been replaced with cotton. Feeling a hand brushing against his forehead, he tried even harder to open his eyes, but the effort was too much and he fell back into a deep sleep.

Damon had been anxious to check on Sam for over an hour and finally saw his chance. Racing up the stairs, he bumped into Dr. Shelly Cavanaugh on the way. "Shelly, did you get a chance to look at the tapes I sent you?" he asked, hoping that she had good news, but not liking how she avoided looking at him.

"Damon, you know that little boy is sick, and I understand that you wanted me to look at him, but why are you redoing the same tests only two hours after the last set? Are you expecting some sort of miracle or something?" she asked, hating to be brutal, but she'd been on the receiving end of too many people getting the wrong impression then blaming her for an unfavorable outcome.

Smiling, Damon answered honestly, "or something. Look, you don't know Sam and his family like I do, so trust me… run the tests again. Please."

Resigning herself for breaking another family's heart, she nodded and followed him up to the CICU where it looked like her new patient was waiting. Walking into the room behind Damon, she wasn't sure what she was seeing. It looked like an older brother was cuddling with her patient with both parents stroking the boy's hair and arms. 'Odd, but harmless.' She thought, still getting used to the idea that somehow she was supposed to pull a rabbit out of a hat and cure this little boy. Looking at the chart, she quickly pulled Damon off to the side. "Damon, this has to be wrong. He looks like he's six if he's a day, but his chart show he's eight."

Nodding, Damon filled her in on what he knew and let her form the rest on her own. Sighing, they both knew that this was going to be a tough one anyway, and to know that there had been previous trauma, it just made it harder.

"Hi everyone, I'm Dr. Cavanaugh, but everyone calls me Shelly. So, how about I take a look at my patient before we bring in the tech for another test." She watched as the parent's reluctantly moved out of her way, but the brother held fast. 'Ah, the strong silent type.' She mused as she watched Dean watch her. Smiling, she listened to Sam's heart and lungs noting that everyone in the room got real quiet, making her job a lot easier. Turning around, she looked at the readouts showing all the vitals including the heart rhythm. Taking the tape that had been accumulating; she followed it from beginning to end and nodded. "All right, I'm going to send in that tech now. I'll need everyone in the hall while the test is done, then you all can come back in."

"Doctor, Sammy looked like he was trying to wake up and he doesn't do well in strange places. Could one of us stay with him just in case?" Mary asked, scared that her little boy would be frightened to see strangers so close to him.

Smiling, Shelly looked around, "I tell you what, Damon can stand next to Sam while the test is being done that way he won't be afraid. Then as soon as the test is over, all of you can come back in and we'll discuss what I've found."

With everyone in agreement, they watched as the two doctors walked out of the room, leaving them to watch over their Sammy until they would be asked to leave. No one said anything; they just listened to the sound of the beeps ticking out the rhythm of the tiny heart they hoped was healing. Before they knew it, they were in the hallway silently praying for a miracle.

Shelly was watching the monitors with a close eye. Not sure if she was seeing correctly, she asked to tech to leave and told Damon to turn off the lights. Re-adjusting the monitors for brightness, she looked again and saw something that surprised her. Grabbing the pictures from the earlier test, she compared to two images in the monitor's light then looked at Damon in surprise.

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They watched the technician walk out of the room and worried that something was wrong until a few minutes later, Damon opened the door and motioned them in turning the lights back on as they went. No one said a word as they watched Dr. Cavanaugh listen again to Sammy's chest and then look at the EKG again. Finally she turned her attention back to them and shook her head in amazement.

"I don't know how this is happening, but right now it doesn't matter. The damage I saw earlier is already starting to repair itself. I don't want to get anyone's hopes up, but if it continues then Sam should recover nicely. However, I don't want to jump straight to that conclusion until after he wakes and we run another couple of tests." She said, hoping that she hadn't given the family false hope, but then again… when was hope ever false.

Smiling, Dean jumped back onto the bed and arranged Sammy back the way he was, talking to him as if he hadn't stopped. John and Mary took up their posts by their sons and settled in for the night. Now they had hope that their Sammy would be fine, everything else could wait.

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Jacob watched as the ambulance rushed off to the hospital. Smiling, he turned and walked away not wanted to bring attention to himself. He wasn't sure that it would work, but knowing that not only himself but his father also had high blood pressure had made it an easy guess that his son would also. Now all he had to do was wait and see if the brat pulled through, if he did, he could continue to make his life as much of a hell as John had made his.

He remembered the night things changed, it was hard not to. His wife was pregnant, again, and had been in bed most of the day while he was out working earning the money to keep his worthless children fed. Sure the doctor had said this one was going to be harder, but did she have to be so blatant about disobeying him? It was bad enough that the laundry was piling up and dinner wasn't on the table, but to find out that she had talked to the preacher who came by and arranged for some do-gooder to come around and poke their nose in his business. She claimed to be too ill, too exhausted to keep everything done, so he helped to end her misery. People had called him insane, but he couldn't feel anything but contempt for her especially after he found out she was carrying a girl; he knew then he did right, there were enough whiny bitches in the world as it was. They couldn't prove that she hadn't fallen down the stairs; she had too many bruises from her weak blood for them to see much difference. Things would have stayed fine, except his coward of a boy walked into the Sheriff's station and gave a statement that he saw his momma get murdered by his daddy. Well if that hadn't changed things quicker than anything. He watched his remaining boys get led out of the house as if they were going to the park, each of them backing their brother's story up, each one willing to go to a home instead of stay with him. Now he had a chance to make John pay for being the one to send him to prison, and he'd make sure he paid dearly.

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AN: I hope you all enjoyed... stay tuned for more ah's and uh oh's:) 


	10. Chapter 10

Jack hadn't realized that he fell asleep until he woke with the worst crimp in his neck and static playing noisily on the TV screen. Looking at his watch blearily, he saw that it was three in the morning and he wanted more than anything to be able to walk in and check on his girls, but they all were at his in-laws and if he showed up in the middle of the night without someone dying, he'd see the business end of a shotgun. He had known that Penny could have a temper, but he hadn't seen it in awhile and it had admittedly surprised him especially when it was aimed at him.

Thinking about the whole situation made him more than a little uncomfortable. From the beginning he knew that Sam would need extra attention to help him build his self worth up to where it should be, but lately he was feeling as if the boy was being held back. He had no idea why he felt like that, maybe it was because he saw how much his friends put into Sam and he thought maybe more progress should have been made. Unfortunately, that didn't seem the case. Now he was spending hours a day rethinking Sam's case, second guessing himself.

Actually, if he was honest with himself, he'd admit that this had nothing to do with Sam and everything to do with himself. With everything that his family had been put through the last couple of months, he had been rethinking his priorities. Of course Penny and the girls came first, but what came after? How can he advise others when he was feeling so unsure of himself? Knowing there was no easy answer, he knew that there wasn't anyone who could answer his questions for him. At the same time though, he did his best to not look at the opened envelope sitting on the coffee table.

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John looked at his Mary, happy that she had finally dozed off after one of the nurses brought a cot in for them to use. Turning to the boys he couldn't help but smile, even in sleep Dean took his duties as big brother/Guardian seriously; his little brother tucked securely at his side while they both slept. Watching his youngest son's chest rise and fall was almost therapeutic, and he wasn't going to risk ruining this feeling of peace in the middle of all this turmoil.

Settling in a chair next to Sammy, he took his little boy's hand and gently stroked circles on the back with his thumb, thinking of all the things they'd be able to do when they all got out of the hospital. The first thing was go on a vacation somewhere, he knew that meant taking Dean out of school, but his family had been through too much in the last several months, and they needed a break. He had initially wondered if they could wait until Thanksgiving, but then again, it depended on how Sammy was feeling by then.

Stretching, he felt pretty good and knew who he had to thank for that. Now if they could only figure out a way to keep it from happening again, there was no way that he ever wanted Sammy to risk himself like that again; accident or not. He was about to stand up to stretch out again when he noticed a twitch; well, he thought he did. Sammy was so small though, it was kind of hard to tell at times. Staying still and watching for it, he saw that it wasn't his imagination; Sammy had moved.

"Sammy… Sammy, son come on you can do it… Sammy?" he whispered, trying to coax his little boy awake without waking everyone else up instead. Stroking his son's forehead, he continued to whisper encouragement into Sammy's ear until he saw the boy's eyes flutter. It took a few minutes, but he was rewarded with the sight of two beautiful hazel eyes looking up at him.

Sam kept hearing someone, but didn't know who it was. He knew that they wanted him back, but it was hard. He didn't know where he was or what he was doing, he just knew he wanted Dean and his Mommy and Daddy. Feeling something on his head, he tried to open his eyes but they felt like they were glued shut. Finally though he was able to open then and he looked straight into the face of someone he loved a whole lot. "Daddy!" he whispered, unable to make much more of a sound. He tried to smile, but nothing else seemed to be working. Not able to fight the pull of sleep any longer, he whispered " 'night Daddy" before he closed his eyes again.

John couldn't help but smile, he now knew without a doubt that Sammy would be alright. He woke up and talked to him before going back to sleep, this was something that they had all waited for, and he was the one blessed to see it. Smiling, he made his way over to the cot and arranged himself around Mary so they both could rest; the days ahead were going to be busy.

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Damon and Shelly had met up at six in the morning to check on Sam while discussing the case, both hoping to be able to help the little boy and save the family anymore pain. When they opened the door and walked through the door, they were surprised to see both John and Mary on the tiny cot, Dean still asleep while still latching onto his little brother, and their patient wide awake trying not to cry. When they got closer, he looked at them with water eyes.

"Shhh… don't wake them." Sam whispered, wanting his family to sleep a little longer.

Smiling, Damon got a small glass of water and helped the small boy take tiny sips before starting the questions. "Sam, how are you feeling?" he asked, hoping that Sam felt up to discussing his condition.

"Sleepy, but ok." Sam answered, not sure what had happened, he had been here with his Daddy, but now he wasn't.

Shelly saw the confusion on his face and smiled sweetly. "Sam, I'm Doctor Cavanaugh, but you can call me Miss Shelly if you want. Do you remember what happened?"

Sam looked between the new doctor and Damon, then over to Dean and back to his parents. Shaking his head he knew that he had to be careful with what he said, he wished that Dean would wake up.

"Sammy… hey, you're awake." Dean whispered close to Sammy's ear. He had known someone had walked in but something had told him that they were ok, so he hadn't let on that he was waking up. Hearing Sammy whisper and hesitate in his answers made him wake up that much faster. Smiling into his little brother's face, he knew that he did the right thing; Sammy looked relieved that he was there. Giving his little brother a reassuring smile, Dean looked back at Dr. Cavanaugh. "So, how's he doing?" he asked, trying to keep the attention on Sammy strictly professional.

Shelly couldn't help but smile, obviously something was going on with these two, but she decided to play along… for now. "Well, his vital signs are stronger than before, there's not as much arrhythmia at the moment, and he's awake. I'd say all in all, he's doing pretty good; how about you Sam? Are you feeling better?"

Sam was confused and showed it with his next question, "Better than what?" the only thing he knew was that he had seen his Daddy standing over him, but he didn't know why _he_ was in bed. Seeing the concerned look on the doctor's face, he tried hard to remember what happened after lying next to his Daddy, but nothing came to mind, everything was sort of muddled.

Dean couldn't help but sense a bit of panic coming from his little brother, and the only thing he could think of was to hold him close. He had no idea what Damon had told the lady doctor about Sammy, and he wasn't going to volunteer anything. Seeing that they were at a standstill, Dean looked at the doctor and asked if Sammy could have a drink, after she walked out of the room to get some ice he turned to his brother. "Hey Sammy, how are you feeling?" he asked, knowing that it was a simple cliché type question, but he was needing some information, and he had thought slow would be the way to go for now.

Looking around, he knew that the only way to get answers were to ask, and that if anyone could fill him in on what happened it was Dean. "What happened Dean? Why am I in bed?" he asked, not able to hide the fear that was trickling into his voice.

Sighing, Dean looked at Sammy and smiled, "Ok, we have to make this quick. Dad had a heart attack, they didn't think he was going to make it, you snuck in and fell asleep and the next thing we know Dad's ok but your not. So, the real question is, did you do it and if so, were you _trying_ to get yourself killed?"

Damon stood by and watched the exchange take place. He had to admit that he was curious to see if his theory was correct; Sam had healed John but hadn't meant to do it all at once.

Sam looked between Dean and Damon and cried, "Daddy wasn't feeling good for awhile, and I tried to help but it made me tired, but then Daddy was here and I couldn't wake him up but he was alone so I laid down and fell asleep." He finished with a couple of hiccups and turned back to Dean. "Am I in trouble now?"

Dean didn't know what to say, he had thought that was what had happened, but to actually hear it was something else entirely. Sighing, he shook his head, "No way Sammy, you didn't do anything wrong, we just have to figure out how to keep this from happening again though. I don't know how many more times Mom and Dad can take seeing you in a hospital bed."

Smiling, Damon glanced over to the elder Winchester's and saw that they had heard the whole thing. Seeing the expressions on their faces he immediately thought, 'I bet their wondering the same thing.'


	11. Chapter 11

AN: Ok everyone... we all need to thank Sammygirl1963 for reminding me that I hadn't posted this one yet... yeah, I know - I'm senile! lol!

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It took a more than a little bit of convincing, but Damon had finally gotten all three Winchester's out of Sam's room long enough for them to eat breakfast. Now he sat watching a true miracle among mortals sleep, and he was amazed at how alright he was with it. He had been trying to suppress the identity of the patient in the room, but unfortunately, hospitals aren't known for their great secret keeping skills. He had an ulterior motive in chasing the family away, and he knew that it was about to make itself known pretty quick.

Looking at the clock, he knew that a couple of the doctors in Radiology and Pediatrics met about this time to take a break and shoot the bull by the ER bay doors, and sure enough, two minutes later they were in the room trying to get a glimpse of Sam as if he was some sort of trophy to admire. Chasing them out of the room had been the easy part, getting over the disgust he felt for those particular doctors would take him awhile. He had heard the rumors of how Sam had come back into the hospital, and they ranged from the totally ridiculous to the so close it was scary. Now though, he could keep watch until John, Mary, and Dean got back and they shouldn't have any suspicions about the commotion that had occurred. _Yeah, well, it was a good plan; damnit!_

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John and Mary had to practically physically restrain Dean to keep him from darting out of the diner to get back to Sammy. They were wanting to rush back to, but unfortunately Damon was right, they needed to stay healthy to look after Sammy. No one had wanted to admit how scared they actually were about how hurt he could actually be, but they also didn't want to put their head in the sand either.

Looking between Mary and Dean, John finally said what was on his mind, "As soon as Sammy's released from the hospital, I think we all need to take a vacation. I know that will mean pulling the boys out of school, but after everything that's been going on…"

"John, you don't have to explain. I agree, we've been going practically non-stop, and even if we weren't feeling the strain, it's evident that Sammy is." Mary told him, placing a hand on his arm, letting him know that it was the right decision.

Dean was excited, he knew that Sammy would need some time to recover; he wasn't as stupid as some people thought. Now he'd be able to help take care of his Sammy and they all would get some time together too. Not wanting to ruin the moment, he stayed quiet, happily watching his parents make those silly doe eyes at each other. Too bad it didn't last long.

At a table close by four doctor's were talking about the little miracle boy that was back and what business did Dr. Lucas have in interfering with seeing him anyway. Completely oblivious to the occupants at the other tables, they continued to talk as if it was another topic of polite conversation, not taking into consideration how the information they were sharing could very well hurt the very little boy they were talking about. It wasn't until one of them had wondered aloud if anyone had invited anyone from the universities to come and look at the boy for any paranormal abilities that John stood up and with fire in his eyes charged up to the hospital with Mary and Dean close behind.

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Jacob had been all set to lay out a heartbreaking sob story to the receptionist about how his son was in the hospital and him needing to know how he was. That was until he looked across the street to see that very son marching into the hospital as if he was charging through the gates of hell. Stunned, he could only watch as the trio quickly got in the elevator and then was out of sight.

Looking between the receptionist and the elevator, he decided he needed to rethink the situation and turned on his heel and left, all the while pondering what he just saw; and if there was any possible way to turn it around for his benefit.

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Damon knew he was in trouble, it didn't take a genius to figure out that if John Winchester's eyes were so dark they were almost black then it wasn't a good thing. Looking between Sam and John he had no idea what to expect and prayed that Sam wouldn't witness what was about to happen; the kid had been through enough already.

Taking Damon by the scruffs, John slammed him into the wall and held fast. "Mind telling me what the real reason for getting us out of the room was? I hear that there are some people at some universities that would _love_ to get their hands on Sammy." John practically growled in Damon's face.

Shaking his head, Damon was trying very hard to explain, but wasn't getting anywhere since he could barely breathe much less form complete words. Looking over at Mary he was hoping that her gently understanding nature would help calm John down, but it looked like her gentle understanding nature was still out for breakfast. He was sure he was going to die, because anyone that pissed off was more likely to kill someone without hesitating than any other time in their life.

"Is Sammy ok enough to take home?" John asked, not wanting to risk his son, but feeling that keeping him there was more of a risk than he was willing to take.

Damon glanced at Sam's vital signs posted on the monitor, and looked at the boy in the bed. Reluctantly, he nodded his head, knowing that this particular family would make sure that Sam would get whatever he needed. As John let him go, he knew sadly knew that this could very well be the last time he saw the little boy. Unhooking the machines and the IV, he knew that Sam would wake up confused, but didn't dare suggest any sedatives in case of a panic attack. Knowing that it was futile to argue, he watched as John bundled the boy up in the sheets and blankets, quickly followed by Mary who had the boy's things and Dean who looked at him as if they shouldn't have trusted him to begin with. Now that the room was empty, Damon allowed himself the luxury to break down, praying that he did the right thing by letting them go, while at the same time planning to find out who was stupid enough to suggest a paranormal research study.

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John walked out of the hospital with the precious bundle in his arms knowing that no matter what they were stronger as a family. Tucking Sammy in the back with Dean, he looked at Mary and they silently agreed; they definitely needed to get away for awhile. Pointing the Impala towards their home, they felt as if everything would be ok now that they had the smallest member of their family back home.

After getting everyone settled in the cottage, John called Pastor Jim and filled him in on everything. Immediately, the invitation to stay with him was given, giving John a sense of relief. Even though he was secure with his decision to move Sammy, he wasn't secure in the notion that he wouldn't get the medical care that he could need. Blue Earth, Minnesota sounded like the place to go to get Sammy back on his feet and things back to normal again.

Not wanting to waste any time, they agreed to get Sammy changed before they packed and left right away. It took a couple of tries to wake their little boy up, but once his eyes opened and he saw he was home, he seemed a lot happier. When they mentioned going to Pastor Jim's however, his demeanor changed and once again he fell quiet. Hoping that it was just him being tired, they decided to let Dean find out what happened before they left.

"Hey Sammy, what's wrong buddy?" Dean asked, listening to his parents pack clothes and snacks for the ride. Not getting a response, he asked again, this time pulling Sammy's face up until they saw eye to eye.

"I don't want to go Dean, I want to stay here." He cried, not caring at the moment how whiny he sounded.

Normally Dean would have just brushed off the comment and moved on, however with everything that had been happening lately, including his lack of listening skills with Sammy, he mulled over in his brain what his little brother said. After a few moments of analyzing what the statement could mean, he finally came to one meaning that left him cold. "Sammy, do you think we're going to leave you there?" he asked, not wanting it to be true but the lack of an answer was all the proof that he needed.

Getting his parents' attention, he quickly tried to reassure his little brother, "Sammy, we're just going there for you to relax and get better, then we're all coming back home; that includes you too kiddo."

Sam looked up at Dean and had trouble believing it, but then one voice broke through the chaotic thoughts jumbled up in his brain. 'Dean would never lie to me.' That was all he needed to hear and after giving Dean a big hug he helped Puppy up in his lap and drifted to sleep, leaving three very concerned people to deal with what just occurred.

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AN: How'd you like it... let me know! 


	12. Chapter 12

AN: here we are... a bonus update! hope you enjoy!

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The decision to leave quickly hadn't been a problem, the question of what to do with Puppy had quickly become a dilemma. Not knowing how long they were going to be gone, they knew that they couldn't leave him, but him still being a puppy meant that he still needed frequent bathroom breaks. Finally, it was Mary who had pointed everyone to the car, and after helping tuck Sammy in the backseat, secure next to his brother, she went back into the house and packed a small bag for the little fur ball in question. By the time they had gotten fifteen minutes away, both Sammy and Puppy were sound asleep with Dean keeping watch over them.

Seven hours, three fill ups and an emergency potty break later, they were pulling up to Pastor Jim's feeling as if maybe they had finally made it someplace safe. It was an odd feeling once they thought about it, they should have been safe at home, but now their lives had changed, and unless things changed, they probably would never be able to get rid of the fear that gripped them; not for themselves, but for their Sammy.

Jim had heard the car pull into the drive and was concerned when no one moved to get out. Looking back at his other guest, he motioned that something could be wrong before he walked into the Autumn afternoon. Watching the occupants of the Impala, Jim nonchalantly checked his pocket to make sure his small pistol was still there. Walking closer, he was able to get a better look at what was going on and had to smile at what he saw.

After the car stopped, Puppy had sprung up as if he was a jack in the box and started to bounce around the inside of the car, waking Sammy in the process. It had taken a few minutes for them to subdue the little mongrel so Dean could help Sammy sit up before the puppy began his assault on the little boy's face.

Finally getting everyone out of the car, they were immediately greeted warmly by Jim and led into the house just as the sun was starting to hide over the horizon. Walking into the warm kitchen, they were surprised to see they weren't the only ones visiting, but Sammy was especially excited to see who was there.

"IZZY!!!" he squealed as he ran up to her and hugged her around the waist.

"Hello Sam sweetie, I hear that you've been feeling under the weather." She said as she looked toward John and Mary. Seeing their worried faces, she guided the little boy to the table. "Ok now, there's no reason to get so excited, you're still trying to get well. Now, I'll make some tea, how about everyone sit down and we can discuss the mad dash up here."

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Jacob had been scoping out the hospital and watching the nursing staff, his interest piqued when he heard several staff members murmuring about their own little 'miracle boy' who had made another appearance and then disappeared in broad daylight. He had no idea what to make of it, but after seeing his son walking around healthy as a horse and ready to go up against the devil himself, he was ready to give the gossip a little credence. Walking around the CICU waiting room, he tried to find out how John could have been on death's door one minute, and hunky dory fine the next.

Finally, the break he was looking for came when a nurse's assistant was just going on break and was talking on her cell phone as she walked out the doors. He didn't have to stay too close to her since she was practically yelling into the mouth piece.

"… no I'm not drunk Maggie, I'm telling you he was practically dead one minute and the next he's watching his little boy get resuscitated…I wouldn't lie about this, you know that!... I don't know, the little boy was gone when I went back on shift, but one of the nurses said that his daddy wrapped him up and took him out of the hospital AMA… I _know_!"

Jacob couldn't help but become more curious as the aide became more agitated in her conversation, not caring who around her to overhear. They had just reached outside when he saw his chance. "Uh, excuse me… miss?" He asked, schooling his features to look as concerned as he could "I'm sorry miss, but I hope you can help me? My son was brought in here last night, he collapsed at a restaurant having dinner with his lovely wife and I know he was brought here, but now…" he turned away and wiped at his eye as if to brush away a tear. "I'm sorry, I'm just so worried because now no one knows where he is and I heard his little boy is ill too…"

"Oh my… I … I think I know who you're talking about. That it so _weird_! I was just talking to my best friend about it." She told him, then continued to fill him in on everything she knew, including what some of the others thought.

By the time Jacob had left the parking lot, his mind was swimming with the possibilities. Imagine; having some sort of freak in the family, and what benefits it could bring.

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Izzy was humming contentedly at the stove making tea for everyone as well some hot chocolate for later. She was listening to little Sam in the living room playing with the puppy and couldn't help but smile; it had felt so much longer than it actually was since she last saw him. Sighing, she took the mugs from the stove and sat at the table while John and Mary finished telling her and Jim what had happened to make them take off so suddenly.

Jim looked more than a little worried, and she couldn't blame him. She had known people who had gone through some of those paranormal studies, and not all of them came out the same. It seemed the stronger the psychic, the more determined researchers were determined to find their limits. The more disturbing issue to her however, was how Sam was tapping into his abilities too soon, he was still too small and obviously not ready.

Mary watched Izzy and wondered what was on the older woman's mind. "Izzy, you're worried aren't you?" she asked, knowing that the woman loved her son as much as she did.

Nodding, Izzy agreed, "Yes, I am worried, but probably not by what you think. I know that with Sam tapping into his abilities this early we should be happy, that he'd have a longer period of time to get used to them. However, his body just isn't ready yet. Normally, the standard practice would be to bind his powers until he was older, but… that wouldn't be wise." She looked between the three people at the table and waited for them to ask, when the question was finally tossed out there, she explained, "Most psychic's are born with it and it lays dormant until it's time to make itself known, normally there might be some family history of psychic abilities, but there are hardly any long family lines anymore. Sam was born with the strongest possible lineage on both sides of his family. It is so much a part of him, if we bound him, I'm afraid that it would actually hurt him as much or worse than when he uses his abilities."

Horrified, Mary looked at John and the message was clear… _like hell_! John had to agree, there was no way they could take the chance of hurting him worse; they'd had way too many close calls as it was. Looking between Jim and Izzy, he asked, "So, how do we help lessen the strain?" By the look on her face however, he was wondering if he was going to like this either.

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Jack had known he screwed up, it was a given, but to resort to this made him realize just how _much_ he'd messed up. Standing in the room that John had been in, he could find no sign that John had been there at all. Shaking his head, he knew that he could find out what happened, but he hadn't thought he'd have to go to conventional means when it was his best friend he was talking about.

The ER was fairly slow and finding Dr. Lucas was pretty straightforward, so it didn't take long to get the full story about what happened, even less time for Jack to feel as if the air had been sucked out of the room. It was one thing to suspect something happened, but to be told that the very person you were looking for had a miraculous recovery thanks to the very little boy that you were slamming the previous evening, and now since that same little boy was being eyeballed by some very ambitious people, that the whole family took off; well, it put a lot of things into perspective that he hadn't wanted to think about.

Going to his office, he called Penny and found out that yes, Mary had called her and let her know that they would be gone for a little while; they needed to get away until Sammy was better. Sighing, the enormity of his failure was weighing heavily on him and he suddenly had the desire to go home and crash; until he remembered that his home wasn't at the house at the moment. Taking a deep breath, he took a chance at alienating the one person he would give up everything for.

"Penny, we need to talk about something very important, can you meet me?"

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John would do anything for his little boy, without question, but the look on the older woman's face was telling him that he might not want to know what she was thinking. It wasn't until she finally spoke again, that he knew his instincts were right.

"We let him use them." Izzy said softly, watching the surprise creep up on the other occupants at the table until one in particular looked as if he was about to have a stroke.

"Are you _insane_? Do you have any idea what he goes through? If the extreme exhaustion doesn't hurt him, the actual pain from the strain of it sure as hell makes up for it." John hissed at her, trying to make sure that Sammy didn't overhear, even though he already knew that Dean was keeping track of everything going on in both rooms.

Izzy nodded her head, "Exactly, if we can't bind them, then he needs to exercise them. I think that he's had to suppress what he can do in order to survive with others he's been with. If that's the case, then if he starts to use them, slowly, he can gain control and then it shouldn't effect him so bad." She said, also trying not to disturb Sam's happy playtime with the small bundle of energy. She remembered Sam being that energetic at times, and she was happy to know that he was slowly going back to that.

Mary was concerned, after all her little boy had just healed her husbands dying heart, and he still wasn't fully recovered; if he ever would be. She couldn't help but wonder if letting his abilities grow stronger wasn't just an invitation for something more sinister to come along and take him from her. Leaning back she closed her eyes, praying for some sort of sign of what they needed to do, because at the moment she didn't have a clue.

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Sam continued to play with Puppy on the floor, watching him chase the ball and bring it back. He really hadn't expected the puppy to pick up on the game so quickly, but it was nice to know that his puppy was ahead of the curve. Dean had been playing too until the grown ups started talking in the kitchen, then he would half listen to them while he half watched him play with Puppy.

He knew that whatever it was they were talking about was important, he could feel that much, but he didn't want to see what it was about because he didn't want his Mommy or Daddy to be mad at him. They had told him to rest if he got tired, then let him go and play in the living room. Now he would be happier to let them talk if whatever it was they were feeling didn't give him such a headache.

Feeling tired, he pulled a small pillow off the couch and laid on the floor rolling the ball to Puppy to play fetch with. Still feeling sleepy, he let his eyes drift close, not realizing that Puppy was still playing fetch with the ball that continued to roll back and forth.

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AN: hope you enjoyed, don't forget to let me know! 


	13. Chapter 13

Dean had been listening to the conversation in the kitchen while watching his little brother play with the puppy in the living room. At first he thought it was funny that Sammy was still rolling the ball for the little dog, even after he himself had grabbed a pillow and laid down on the floor. Now, with the conversation on one side of him and what he saw on the other, he quickly felt a little over his head. Looking towards the kitchen table he called out, "Dad, I think you better come here."

John was puzzled by Dean's tone. Usually the boy had a sense of humor that carried into his voice when he was talking about his brother, but now there was something else, as if maybe Dean was about to have his own version of a 'freak out'. Looking around the table, he shrugged his shoulders and went to join his son and froze at the sight that had Dean so concerned.

Sammy was curled up on the floor practically cuddling a throw pillow, while Puppy would chase the ball from the other side of the room and prance his way back to Sammy to deliver the ball then off he'd go to fetch it again. It took a few moments for John to really understand what he was seeing. Sammy was sending the ball off… without touching it… while he was asleep. "Whoa!" was the only thing he could think of to say, and even then he knew it wasn't adequate.

The slight commotion brought the others and they too watched as Puppy brought the ball, then the ball would roll to another part of the room where Puppy would fetch it again. Momentarily stunned, they stood there and watched, until Izzy's voice brought them back to the here and now. "Well, I guess little Sam is beating us to it." She said while wondering if Sam doing it in his sleep was such a good idea.

Jim wondered if there was another possible explanation, because he was sure that Sleep Telekinesis wasn't necessarily a good thing. Thinking over the years of coming in contact with different psychic's the one thing that always stood out, was they had to be in control at all times; even in sleep. There was just too much out there that loved to interfere when a 'gifted' person had their guard down. The only question now is, does Sam know he's doing it, and if not, why is it coming out now?

Dean watched the expressions flicker across everyone's faces and suddenly understood; this was something that Sammy worried about, being considered 'wrong'. Rolling his eyes, he had about enough of the quiet shock fest that was going on and was about to interrupt it, when he heard a whimper behind him and saw the puppy paw at Sammy's face. Rushing over, he saw that Sammy was trembling but wouldn't wake up. Now worried, Dean scooped his little brother up in his arms and held him close until hazel eyes slowly opened. "Hey buddy, you ok?" he asked, hoping that Sammy could explain what just happened.

Sam felt fuzzy, like he hadn't slept at all, but he knew that wasn't right because he remembered laying on a pillow and watching Puppy play. Now though he was looking at his brother and knew that his Mommy and Daddy were close by too. Feeling really cold, he tried to burrow into Dean's shirt, but didn't get too far and that made him sad that he couldn't disappear for awhile. "They're here Dean." He whispered hoping that his big brother could make them go away.

Wondering who Sammy could be talking about he looked to Pastor Jim for some advice, but he saw that the man was just as puzzled. Trying to keep his brother calm was starting to get harder to do and when a knock came from the door Sammy was startled so badly that Dean was sure the little boy's heart skipped a beat.

Seeing Sam's reaction made Jim more than a little nervous and he was hoping to be able to get rid of whoever was at the door so they all could get to the bottom of the situation. Not checking the window first was his first mistake, he'll remember in retrospect, the second was opening the door wide giving full view to the visitors of the occupants of the house, his third was not slamming the door on the owners of the voice who exclaimed "Oh, is that our little Sammy?"

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Caleb hated being out of touch, especially when weird things were happening all over, unfortunately it was the way things had worked out. Now he was going to swing by Jim's and fill him in on a few interesting bits of information before dropping down to check on a certain little family in Lawrence.

Smiling to himself, he couldn't help but wonder if Sam had grown any since the last time he'd seen him. 'God knows the kid needs too… how much longer can he stay that small anyway?'

Grabbing more coffee from the thermos, he made the decision to drive his way through until he got to Jim's, he figured he could get there a little after dark, then he could sleep.

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Amanda and Lyle Carmichael stood in the doorway and looked straight at Sam as if he was a gift from heaven. As soon as he heard her voice though he panicked and broke free from Dean, running through the kitchen and out of sight up the stairs.

Shocked, Jim could only imagine what the little boy was going through, and if his brain had been fully engaged there would have been no way he would have allowed them access into to his home. However, he was still standing there holding the door open when they both walked in without a care in the world.

Dean didn't like them, there was something too phony about them and he wished that Jim would have kept them out. Now he had to find Sammy and calm him down all over again before he could find out who these people were. Running up the stairs, he had to stop when he heard whimpering behind him, turning he saw Puppy looking very lost and sad. "You have got to be kidding." He told the little puppy, but picked it up anyway and continued up the steps.

John watched as Dean chased after Sammy and almost laughed when the little mongrel got the boy's attention, almost laughed was defintily the appropriate phrase. He turned to look at the newcomers and had to wonder about his son's reaction to them. As far as he knew Sammy had a lot of people who adored him which made the fear he saw in his son's eyes all the more confusing. Looking at Mary he saw her eyes narrow and he had the feeling that she had just pieced it together and was waiting for him to catch up.

Jim was trying to catch up with what was going on, he really was, but something just wasn't connecting. The Carmichael's had moved after their house had been practically destroyed by the poltergeist, and although he had contact with them through church functions, that was few and far in between; there was no reason for them to be here, especially not tonight.

Smiling, Amanda made the introductions as if nothing out of the ordinary was happening. It wasn't until she sat down and explained how they knew Sammy that John's attention snapped painfully back into focus. "Sammy stayed with me and Lyle for awhile after Pastor Jim had some trouble with the boy." She began and then looked at Mary. "Of course you probably understand what a handful he can be."

Mary disliked the witch immediately and there was no way she was going to allow someone to walk in and disturb her family's rest then insult her son as well. "Actually, we have found our Sammy to be a wonderful angel." She told the woman honestly, "I'm surprised that you found him to be a burden, after all he has brought us more joy than we could have imagined."

Amanda laughed then her attitude became somber once again, "Oh, you were serious. Well, each to their own. However, if what you say is true then I must have to wonder what your other boy is like for you to think that devil child is an angel." She said as she looked around to all the people in the room. Finally she smiled at Lyle, who looked too smug for his own good.

"We have nothing against you folks, we're here for Sammy. If you give him to us peacefully, then you all can finish out your days in whatever comfort you wish. However, if you interfere, then we will have to do this by more drastic means." Lyle said, watching John's reaction.

John had no idea how anyone could be so cold towards a child, especially one like Sammy, but he knew that there would be no way he was going to let these people take his little boy from him. _None_.

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AN: hope you liked it... let me know! 


	14. Chapter 14

Dean had no idea where his little brother was hiding, he only knew that his Sammy was terrified and that was enough for him. Putting Puppy down, he was amazed that the little dog took off in a beeline for a bedroom and scratched and whined at a door until Dean slowly opened it, revealing what seemed to be Pastor Jim's room. Walking in he didn't have to call out, he could tell Sammy was there; he could feel him close. Taking a cue from Puppy, he opened a closet door but found it empty of Sammy, however Puppy wasn't deterred. Dean watched amazed as the puppy bounded into the closet and rooted around until Dean could see what looked like a small panel that was only slightly out of place. Reaching in, he pulled the panel to reveal Sammy in a very cramped space that obviously was never meant to hide a little boy.

"Sammy, it's ok, you can come out now." Dean said softly, not wanting to scare his brother, but needing to convey the urgency of getting him out of there. He had no idea why it was important to get Sammy out of the small space, but he did know that if he didn't, then something bad was going to happen.

Sam knew it was Dean even before he saw him, but knowing that didn't make Sam feel any better; it actually made him feel worse. He knew that the Carmichael's were still downstairs, and he knew that their Mommy and Daddy were down there fighting against them. What they didn't know though was that someone else was coming, and then he would have to go away. It wasn't fair, he just wanted to be with his family – his real family, but no one was going to let him. Maybe if he just stayed in the hole in the wall, no one would bother him anymore and he could be happy. Now though, as he looked at his big brother he knew it was a lie. The only way he could be happy was if he stayed with Dean. Reaching out, he took Dean's hand and allowed his brother to pull him out, and then give him a big hug. Sam could only think about how much he wanted to stay like that forever.

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Mary had enough of guessing what these people were talking about and even if it wasn't her house, she wasn't going to stand by and allow them to try and bulldoze their way back into her Sammy's life. "What gives you the right to try and get him?" she asked calmly, belying the anger on her face.

"Simple, Sammy was never officially taken from us, as far as the state is concerned, he still belongs to us." Amanda said smugly while looking at Jim, "You really should have made sure everything was taken care of Pastor, after all, Sammy is a very special boy."

Jim looked at Amanda in shock before anger took over. "How dare you come into my home and make accusations, especially after you terrorized that poor boy for months! There is no way that anyone with any amount of conscious would allow you guardianship of Sam after that." He spat out, what hold on his patience suddenly breaking loose. He knew something else was at work here, but he had no idea what it could be to have involved these people as well.

John stood up and physically blocked the pathway into the kitchen in case the Carmichael's got any bright ideas. It wasn't until he heard the next knock on the door and saw the flashing lights in the window that he knew that this could be more than they were equipped to handle at the moment.

Opening the door, Jim saw that it was the Sheriff of Blue Earth, and he didn't look happy. "Jim, I'm sorry to disrupt your evening, but I just received a call stating that there was a family here trying to get their son back. Do you have any idea what's going on?"

Standing, Lyle Carmichael smiled at the Sheriff, "Of course, please come in Sherriff Miller, we were just explaining to the Winchester's here how the kind Pastor arranged an adoption of a child who still belonged to us. Now, if you would care to look over the paperwork that our caseworker gave us, as well as the Judge's decree that we still have guardianship over little Sam, then we all can be done with this unfortunate business."

Sheriff Miller knew when he was getting shoveled a bunch of manure, and by the smell of it, he'd just been handed a truckload. Looking at the papers in his hand he saw that the name of the caseworker did indeed work for Children's Services in the area, and yes the Judge was an authentic one. Smiling, he handed the pages back. "I'm not sure what's really going on here, but I do know that Judge Fields had to leave unexpectedly the day before he supposedly signed these papers." He looked at the Carmichael's and saw the immediate change from cocky to terrified and couldn't help but wonder about it. He didn't have a chance to ponder it for too long as both Carmichael's suddenly slumped to the floor with single gunshot wounds to the head.

Mary found herself on the floor underneath her husband after he leapt over the couch to get her out of harms way. Still shocked about what happened; she could only look around and watch as the Sheriff and Jim ran out the door to check outside in hopes that they could find the shooter.

John had seen the red dot first strike Lyle Carmichael then move to Amanda. In that short amount of time he jumped over the couch and shielded Mary with his own body, hoping that the sniper was already gone. He could feel Mary looking around, but his mind switched gears and he listened to the noises upstairs. He knew that the shuffling he heard was normal walking and not the scrambling of little feet; he hoped that meant the boys didn't hear anything of what was going on beneath them.

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Dean knew that Sammy was upset, and wanted to try and make him feel better, but somehow he knew that until everything got back to normal then it was going to be difficult. Puppy had taken to laying down and watching their every move, and that made Dean feel a little weird but he knew that he was slowly starting to accept the little furball into the family. He paused for a moment, listening to the sounds coming from downstairs and understood that things were getting a little complicated. Looking down at his little brother, he whispered, "Sammy, I want you to walk slowly to the window but stay in the shadows, ok?"

Sam knew that something bad was happening downstairs, he could feel how worried Mommy and Daddy were, so when Dean wanted to go to the window, he wasn't going to argue. He watched as Puppy jumped around a little but stayed pretty quiet, waiting to see what they would do next.

They had just managed to look out the window when they heard the sounds of something heavy hitting the floor downstairs. Sam looked at Dean and saw that his big brother was looking nervously outside. "C'mon Sammy, it looks like we need to get out of here for awhile." Dean told Sam as he helped his little brother out onto the overhang. Dean knew that Sammy wouldn't leave Puppy behind, so he quickly bundled the small dog into his shirt and joined his little brother into the night.

As he was helping his brother along the edge of the house, his attention was drawn to the back of the property where it looked like several people were running away. It didn't occur to him what they would want, until he felt the house shake then a blast of warmth enveloped them seconds before the sound and smells of the fire followed.

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Mary and John had just stood up when they felt the shockwave hit them in the living room and felt the heat coming from the back of the house. As they both tried to run towards the stairs, they were manhandled from behind towards the door with Jim's voice shouting, "We can get to them from the outside."

As they felt the cold Autumn air surround them, their only thought was of their boys and how they would get them out. Chasing Jim around the side of the house, they saw both Dean and Sammy on a ledge and were about to call out to them when they saw headlights illuminate the area and heard Caleb's voice echo in the night.

"What the hell, Jim?" he shouted, as he watched Jim's house get engulfed in flames. Seeing that they were trying to get to the back of the house, he took notice that he wasn't alone. "Izzy?" he asked, seeing the older woman taking some time trying to get her breath back, but was more shocked when she told him who they were trying to get. Suddenly everything fell into place and he wasted no more time following Jim and the Winchester's.

As the group of people got close to the boys, another explosion rocked the house, almost knocking them off their feet. Standing helpless, they watched Dean hold on to his little brother tighter as they looked for a more sturdy landing. As they all watched, they saw Sammy say something to Dean which the older brother didn't like at all, but nodded grudgingly. Before anyone had a chance to call out, they both jumped off the edge and into the night.

John felt as if his heart stopped as he watched his boys jump off the side of the house, but also was thankful that they had when they did. It was hard for him to comprehend what would have happened if they had stayed there a moment longer. A third explosion ripped the side wall of the house apart leaving in it's place flying debris that seemed to go around the boys and their family. That's when they noticed the bright blue light that surrounded them as they all watched Dean and Sammy land and roll on the ground a little worse for wear, but otherwise alright.

Mary ran to her boys and hugged them both closely. "Are you ok? Oh my God, you both could have been killed!" she exclaimed, not wanting to believe how close they came to losing them. Seeing her little boy look around she asked, "Sammy, what's wrong baby?"

Sam looked around some more and couldn't find what he was looking for, looking up at the house he was about to cry when he felt a nudge from his brother and heard an excited yelp from his side. "Puppy!" he yelled, snatching the small dog closely, "Oh, thankyouthankyouthankyou Dean! You're the bestest big brother ever!" he exclaimed happily, allowing Puppy to lick him while he hugged Dean close all within the safe and warm confines of their mother's arms.


	15. Chapter 15

AN: Hope you enjoy this chapter...don't forget to let me know!

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It had taken awhile to get everyone to a motel close by and settled into a couple of rooms, before they all met up and talked about what happened. Jim watched as Sam played with the little dog happily as if nothing out of the ordinary happened earlier, shaking his head he couldn't get over how much he was reminded of the much younger boy who stayed with him. Dean was watching his little brother and couldn't help but wonder about what would have happened if he hadn't listened to his little brother.

"_Dean, do you trust me?" Sammy asked quietly looking at Dean with wide eyes._

_Puzzled, Dean looked at his little brother trying to see what he was talking about, "Of course I do, why?" he asked, wondering if this was one of those silly games Sammy liked to play when he was nervous._

"_Jump!" Sammy said confidently not taking his eyes off his big brother._

_Dean looked at his little brother and wasn't happy with what he heard, but knew it was time to put up or shut up, then tightened his grip on Sammy and jumped just as the wall disintegrated behind them. _

He remembered the blue light that surrounded not only them but their family as well, it wasn't the same as when Sammy kept the demons away, but it was similar in how it made him feel; safe and warm. Now he continued to watch Sammy play with Puppy as if nothing happened and he wasn't sure if he was relieved or worried that his little brother wasn't feeling any after affects. He had just turned away for a moment, and then noticed something when he looked back that made him hesitate in his spot.

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Caleb couldn't believe what happened either in the evening, and he really wasn't sure he wanted to fully understand the implications. Unfortunately he didn't have the luxury of sticking his head in the sand like 'normal' people who didn't see what was happening around them. No, he knew something was going on and he had a feeling he knew what.

"Jim, I know that you didn't get a good look at the guys who ran off, but I have to think that arrival of the Carmichael's was just too damn convenient. You know as well as I do that there's a certain group who would go to any lengths to get Sam, even murder." Caleb said quietly so that the adults would here, but hopefully Sam and Dean wouldn't.

Nodding, Jim had the same feeling. Too many people wanted little Sam, and now it looked as if they've upped their game. Looking at John and Mary, he could only try and comfort them. "We'll bring in Bobby and Joshua to make sure that Sam and Dean are safe, but this could cause some complications. If it looks like they're being protected, then it could be a sign that we're worried, and that's the last thing that we need."

Mary was horrified, "The last thing we need? Are you insane? I'm more concerned about my boys than what it looks like if they have someone around protecting them." She hissed at Jim, wondering why they didn't just grab the boys and head home.

"Mary, Jim's right, as much as I hate to admit it. If these are the same people who took Sammy, then any sign of weakness will make them believe they're right, that we're not worthy enough to take care of Sammy or Dean." John said bitterly. How he wished he didn't have to tell her that, but the truth was just that and it had to be said. Now though as he was watching his little boy play, he noticed that Dean had tensed up while watching his little brother. "Dean?" he called out, trying not to disturb Sammy while he was playing happily, "Is something the matter?"

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Dean heard his dad call out to him, and he would have shook his head except he wasn't sure. He watched Sammy play with Puppy, and everything was ok, until it looked as if Sammy was getting tired, then something seemed to happen and his little brother would appear to get more energy; that something was Puppy's eyes would shine blue, the same blue that surrounded them earlier.

Looking back at his dad, Dean had no idea what to tell him. How did you explain that the family mutt had weird eyes? It wasn't until he saw Izzy look over and watch that he realized that he wasn't the only one who saw what was happening. It wasn't until Izzy spoke, that he understood that things were about to get stranger than ever.

"Oh my! It looks like Sammy has a familiar." Izzy said in awe, completely unaware that she had said it out loud.

Jim looked confused then watched as Sam continued to play, and then turned to Izzy. "I thought familiars were for witches?" he asked, not sure he was comfortable with where his mind was going.

Smiling as if Jim had told a joke, Izzy replied easily, "and giving birth to children are only for humans?" when she saw that she had their attention she continued, "I'm not sure of course, but it would explain how Sam was able to shield us and not fall flat on his face from exhaustion." She watched as Puppy stopped his playing and looked at them as if contemplating their existence. "Ok, maybe not a familiar per se, but definitely something that's here to help."

Dean had been listening and wasn't sure what to think. Finally he asked what was tumbling through his mind, "I thought _I'm_ supposed to help?"

Looking at Dean, the others weren't sure what to think, however any thoughts they may have formed where scattered when there was a knock at the door. "I'll get it!" Sammy exclaimed happily as he ran to the door. Before anyone could stop him he had the door open and had jumped into the arms of the person in question making several of the room's occupants hearts stop, until they saw who walked in the door. "Hi Crocell!" Sammy said, giving his grandfather a hug around the neck.

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Penny couldn't believe what she had heard from her husband, and the more she replayed the conversation in her head, she wasn't sure if she ever would. If this happened, it would change everything, and she didn't think she could handle that; at least not right now. They had responsibilities, not only to family, but friends and neighbors as well. Sure it was rough right now, but she had never known her husband to be a quitter. Now she was truly wondering if she knew her husband at all.

Looking out at the night sky she prayed that Mary and her family were having a better day than she was, because right now she could really use her best friend.


	16. Chapter 16

AN: Ok... I survived the ice storm just for the internet to go down again... so, here I am trying hard to update. Hope you all can forgive the slow updates.

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As Crocell walked into the motel room with Sammy wrapped around him like a koala bear, the others in the room looked on in shock, not knowing how to take this new development. Seeing their bewilderment, Crocell looked across the room and asked, "Samuel, I take it you are getting along with your gift?"

Sam smiled and nodded, anxious to get back to Puppy. Looking over, he watched as his little dog pranced over and sat in front of his grandfather as if waiting for a treat. Wondering what was going on, he asked Crocell, "You gave him to me?" then looked at Dean a little upset that they hadn't rescued a puppy after all.

Crocell put his grandson down and nodded, "Yes, I did, and for now you just need to worry about staying close to him for awhile. In fact, why don't you and he go back and play?" After making sure that Sam had done as he was asked, he looked as the others for a moment before speaking again. "The demon who took Samuel and Dean hasn't given up his quest for the upper hand. I sent this little… gift to help Samuel when using his abilities gets to be too much. Basically, the mongrel will help channel any pain Samuel has as well as help him to focus. Dean, you are his Guardian, but sometimes an extra hand is helpful." He said looking between Dean and the adults.

Jim couldn't help but wonder at a few things but it was Dean's voice who broke through, surprising everyone. "Where's Hariel? Doesn't she care enough to be here too?" he asked bitterly, wondering why their lives had to continue to be so complicated that they couldn't have a normal dog, or go somewhere where they didn't have to worry about demon angels stopping by for a visit.

"She's taking the standard 'no interference' stance." He answered, then laughed at their shocked looks, "What can I say, sometimes it feels good to be bad."

Mary couldn't believe what she was seeing or hearing and it was making her more than a little upset. "I thought you two could only be summoned by Sammy. What are you doing here without her?"

Looking at Mary as if she was thoroughly amusing, Crocell leaned against a table and smiled, "Now what made you think that? It's true, that if Samuel needs us, then he can summon us – together. However, that does not mean that we cannot move around on our own." Looking at them then at Sam, he started toward the door then turned back around. "You need to understand, there are no rules, this is not a game, and if you mess it up, Samuel will be the one who suffers; and make no mistake, that would make me very unhappy."

They all watched as he walked out the door and didn't look back, each one wondering the true purpose of his visit. It wasn't until they heard the puppy whimper that they saw Sam sound asleep. Going over to him, they made sure that he was breathing alright, considering that they still didn't know the extent of the damage to his heart, it was a legitimate concern. Dean picked up his little brother and put him on the bed furthest from the door and curled in behind him, hoping that whatever was going to happen would wait until Sammy felt better.

John and Mary watched as their sons laid on the bed, and they couldn't help but wonder about Crocell's visit. It was one thing for him to stop by, but he had warned them to the dangers that were surrounding Sammy and for that matter Dean, but he didn't explain anything. Sighing, John looked at Jim and Izzy before asking, "Any ideas?"

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Crocell knew that he was treading a very fine line, but at this point he really didn't care. A warning had already been given, and it looked as if it hadn't been heeded, if the attempt on Samuel's life was any indication. He knew that it wasn't humans who had planned it, and that was what made him more determined to make sure that his warning was remembered. No direct attempts would be allowed, and this last one had that yellow eyed bastard's scent all over it. Although, he had to admit, it did have a streak of genius to it. Make a group of humans destroy the home of a clergyman. He would have been impressed if it hadn't been Samuel they were trying to get rid of.

He hadn't lied to them about Hariel taking a non-committal stance, she wasn't thrilled with the idea, but she wasn't going to go against the rules even for their grandson. He wasn't kidding when he had told the Winchester's and their friends that sometimes it felt good to be bad. Now though, he had to wonder just how far that demon spawn had gotten in getting acceptance, within the inner circle; more importantly, he wondered how much damage control he was going to have to do to save his own status within the ranks.

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Thankfully the rest of the evening went by uneventfully, however the night was another story. Sammy's screams could be heard throughout the motel, making the manager more than a little upset. It had taken Jim showing the manager personally that the little boy in question wasn't being murdered while everyone else slept, but was in fact caught in a nightmare and would awaken soon.

Dean was beyond scared. He had held onto Sammy tightly, but he could feel his little brother's heart beating so hard and fast that Dean was sure it was trying to escape out of it's confinement within Sammy's chest. He had looked towards his parents to see if they could do anything, but they were as helpless as he felt; even Puppy couldn't break through whatever horrors Sammy was experiencing; Dean had no doubt that whatever was going on, Sammy wasn't just a spectator, but an active participant.

Izzy had made some tea to try and calm down the little boy, but it was next to impossible to get it down his throat without choking him, so she quickly put it to the side to wait until the terrors passed. She looked around and could see how much everyone cared for little Sam, and it made her feel good that he had finally found a home. Turning back towards the boys on the bed, she knew that this wasn't just a nightmare; something was attacking, and it wasn't holding back. Turning to Jim, she suggested, "I think we need to make sure that the area is secure for _all_ possibilities."

Jim looked at Izzy, then back at Sam and wondered how such a little boy could have that much fright in them. Glancing around the room he realized that they had only prepared for a demon attack, but if a Seer or Reader had managed to break through Sam and Dean's defenses. "Damn, you're right Izzy, we need to do it quickly; I don't know how much more he can take."

John and Mary looked at them as if they were insane, but allowed them to go around the room with chalk, markers, and something that looked like black paste putting symbols on the doors and walls, leaving the windows for last. As soon as the last symbol was put in place, Sam stopped screaming and fell back against the bed unmoving. Running to the bed, they both tried to wake their youngest boy, with no effect. Looking to Dean, they wondered if he knew what was going on, but was disappointed when Dean merely shook his head before he started to stroke the dark curls on Sammy's head.

Dean knew that whatever had just happened wasn't night terrors, and now he had to wonder if they ever were. He didn't know what Sammy saw, but he felt how scared and miserable his little brother had been. It was almost as if little Sammy had to watch his worst nightmare over and over again; no, maybe more like _live_ his worst nightmare over and over again. All he knew no though, was that his little brother was exhausted to the point that he hadn't even twitched since he collapsed back on the bed and he didn't know how that was going to affect his health. There were too many unknowns, and that was unacceptable.

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Jacob knew that his son had taken his family away like the coward that he is, but that didn't make him upset with the boy. On the contrary, it made his job a lot easier. He had been asking questions about the smallest boy, and although many had very politly told him to mind his own business, there were a few who were more than willing to tell him everything they knew about the Winchester's ever since the little boy had come to them, and after putting it all together, he found a very interesting story indeed.

Smiling, he knew how to get his son to come back and face him. He'd go all out and attack his greatest weakness; his so called family. By the time he told the newspapers about what he had found out, Johnnyboy would be more than willing to sit down and talk with his own daddy and settle things once and for all. 'Yes, by tomorrow evening I'll get to make that bastard son of mine pay.' He thought happily, reaching for the phone and asking to be put through to the editor.

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Damon Lucas knew that the Winchester's were gone for awhile, and although he wondered where and how they were, he wasn't going to rush out and look for them; they deserved some piece and quiet for a change. He had just finished his rounds and was about to finish some long overdue paperwork when his phone rang.

"Lucas here" he answered, hoping that this wasn't another crank call that had somehow gotten through the switchboard.

A weary sounding voice could be heard on the phone, making Damon wonder what was going on. "Dr. Damon Lucas?" the voice asked sounding as if he was unsure about how to continue.

"Yes, I'm Dr. Damon Lucas, and you are?"

"Uh…I'm Dr. John Ryan at Blue Earth General, and I need to know about Samuel Winchester….

"Sam? He's there? Is he ok? Oh god, tell me he's ok." Damon had a thousand thoughts run through his mind and most of them entailed little Sam lying dead somewhere because noone was sure how bad his heart was until it was too late. He was abruptly brought back to reality when the other voice was heard again.

"Dr. Lucas, I was told that you were his attending physician in Lawrence, Kansas. Can you please tell me why I'm looking at a little boy who's heart looks like half of it could stop at any moment and why the people who were waiting so anxiously awhile ago now look as if I just told them the greatest news in the world?" Dr. Ryan asked, totally confused by the extremes that the family members were caring on.

Damon sighed loudly knowing that the other doctor could hear, but not caring. "Yes, of course. You see, he had some severe heart damage, but if you say that it's now only half, then that is good news; it's repairing itself as expected."

There was a pause before Dr. Ryan continued with his questioning. "Did you just say 'repairing itself as expected' Dr. Lucas? Could you please elaborate on that?"

Pausing for a moment, Damon suddenly got a chill go down his spine and couldn't help but wonder if maybe he'd given too much information already. "You know, I think I'd better speak with his family so I don't step on anyone's toes. Are they nearby?" he asked, hoping that he was wrong, but the click on the phone and the resulting dial tone was all he needed to know that he may have just made a sensitive subject worse.

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AN: Hope you liked it, let me know! 


	17. Chapter 17

AN: So sorry for the delay... was celebrating a couple of birthdays with some very special boys... Happy Birthday Danny and Christian!!!

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Jacob Winchester was a very happy man. He had just received a phone call that was going to change his life for the better, and make his son's life a living hell. 'I couldn't have planned it out better myself.' He thought to himself, smiling widely as he thought about all the money he was going to get from that reporter. He was thinking he needed to get himself a lawyer, just to make sure he didn't get screwed in the final negotiations, but then thought against it since lawyers liked to take large chunks out of the profits.

Reaching for another beer, he was letting his mind drift to what he would be able to do, and he quickly realized that with how big the story could go, he could very well become richer than even his vivid imagination would allow him to contemplate. He deserved it, he spent years in prison with society's filth because of his son, and now he was going to be able to use his experience as the means to better himself.

He still couldn't believe what goody two shoes his boy had become; taking in other people children as if he was a better parent than others. He scoffed at that notion, he knew that deep down John was just like him, a real chip off the old block and nothing anyone else said was going to change his mind. After all, it wasn't him who was living in a house that was actually owned by one of his adopted brats, now was it? It seemed as if the people in this town either didn't know that piece of information or forgot about it. Well, they would be reminded soon enough when the story broke about the little freak bastard his son had taken in.

The sound of the phone ringing brought him back to the present and out of his musings making him wonder if it was the reporter calling with information. Reaching for the phone, he was disappointed at the voice he heard on the other end of the line.

"We need to talk."

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Dean woke to the feeling that something wasn't right, he couldn't place; in fact he didn't want to. Right then at that moment, he felt caught in between the here and now, and somewhere else at some other time. He had no idea what he was feeling, just that something was terribly wrong. He didn't have time to contemplate it.

None of the adults had been able to sleep, so they all had met back at the Winchester's room early trying to come up with an idea of who had blown up the rectory. Knowing that they wouldn't get very far without more information, or at least some sort of evidence that might have been overlooked by the fire department and the police, the idea had been formed to go back as soon as it was light and try their luck at getting some information. However that changed immediately as soon as the door to the room was blown inward and a group of dark dressed men rushed in training their weapons on everyone in the room.

Caleb knew that it was going to be a bad day as soon as he realized that they ran out of coffee two hours ago and no one could seem to be bothered to go and get more. It was as if something came up, or some new piece of the puzzle would be brought forth that made everyone hesitant to leave even for the ten minutes it would take to get to the diner and back. Now he was looking down the barrels of some very serious hardware and couldn't help but wonder what the hell was going on. One minute they were debating whether or not they would get any leads at the rectory, the next they were watching a bunch of storm troopers scan the room. Seeing their confused expressions behind their goggles, Caleb couldn't help but look around as well. It wasn't until his second sweep of the room that it finally occurred to him that Sam and Dean were gone!

John had pushed Mary behind him as soon as the door blew open. His first instinct was to charge the intruders, but he managed to still that impulse at the first glance of the assault weapons. He somehow knew that Sam and Dean were safe, but he had no idea where they were. Right before everything came to a spectacular stop, he had seen Dean tense, then roll off the bed with his little brother in his arms. He was defiantly going to have to ask his son how he knew to do that, then again, maybe he didn't want to know. His main concern was to keep everyone calm until they all could get out of the situation in one piece. Why did he think that was going to be easier said than done?

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Damon had been worried for the last couple of hours about the Winchester's, so much so that he had called in a favor from some very… interesting people. Now though, after getting the information he needed, he had no idea what to do with it, except revert to a way of life that he swore he was done with a long time ago.

Betty had only known a part of his life, the rest was something that he liked to keep hidden, knowing that in some small way his being a doctor helped him give penance for the way he lived for most of his life. Having friends in gangs had been a way that he had been able to escape some of the insanity that he had to live throughout his life. Although not a full member, he had an honorary status that was upheld by a blood oath that he would never turn away from; even if he could. His friends had kept him alive and mostly sane for years until he was able to pull himself into the life that he had always dreamed of.

Now though, he was having to revert to calling in people who knew too much of darkness, never taking a moment to see the light in life, just to get the information he needed to hopefully help his tiny patient. Unfortunately the news he received made him want to hurl. Apparently the newest Winchester in town had already made some formidable enemies, and his business wasn't exactly secret. Having pissed off so many people had made Jacob Winchester's life an open book; including the interview he had given a certain reporter who had ties to the national headlines. The headline of course being how special Sam really is, which could cause some major privacy issues for the youngest Winchester.

Running his hand through his hair, he reached for the phone and placed a call. It rang a few times before a gruff voice answered. Not in the mood to talk to the vile being, Damon spoke briefly and concisely, "We need to talk."

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Dean had no idea why the men that broke through their door didn't see them, it wasn't as if they were invisible or anything – were they? Looking down at Sammy he was beginning to wonder. As soon as they were on the floor, his little brother had been staring at nothing and the only sound that could be heard from him was a slight whisper of _don'tseeusdon'tseeusdon'tseeus,_ which coming from anyone else would have made him wonder about their sanity, but from Sammy he just had to take it at face value and come up with a plan if things didn't work out that way.

He remembered feeling almost detached, and knowing what he needed to do just as soon as the men came in the room, rolling his tiny brother off the bed knowing that they couldn't get under the bed since it stood on wooden pedestals. Now as he watched, his parents looked like they could rip someone's heart out with their bare hands. Not sure whether he was intrigued or disgusted by that prospect, he continued to clutch Sammy close as he watched the events unfold. It wasn't until he saw the look in his brother's eyes, better yet the lack of, that he knew they all were in trouble.

Sam knew they were being attacked, and he knew it was the same men who tried to hurt them at Pastor Jim's, now though, all he could think about was keeping his family safe. He was scared at first when he felt Dean grab him and they fell on the ground, then he was scared as he watched the men threaten his Mommy and Daddy, but when the items started to fly around the room – he was scared no more. Now, he knew what he had to do; now it was his turn to make the bad men scared. All he had to do was let go.

Letting his mind drift, Sam's vision blurred until the room disappeared and the darkness was all that was left. Not scared, he watched as a beautiful ball of light was seen in front of him across a dark river with tiny pinpricks of light quickly moving to some unseen destination. Smiling, he thought about following, but was abruptly tossed back to the motel room with a warm hand on his cheek and wet kisses on his face. Looking up he immediately saw Dean looking terrified, and his Mommy and Daddy looking worried.

Not wanting to scare them, he tried to smile, but he felt stiff. "Dean?" his whisper croaked out of his throat as if he hadn't spoken in awhile. Wondering what happened, he looked around and saw that the men were gone, but so was the motel wall. Not sure what he was supposed to do, he felt a nap was a good place to start and immediately closed his eyes and let everything else drift away.


	18. Chapter 18

AN: Enjoy!!!

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Dean sat there in stunned silence when he saw Sammy fall asleep in his arms, he had no idea what to think about that. Looking up at his parents and the others in the room, he could tell they were just as clueless. It wasn't until Izzy spoke that it seemed that everything crashed back to the present.

"Well, I must say that was highly unexpected." She said looking at the now non existent wall of the motel room. Walking over she saw the debris on the sidewalk and the parking lot, but no sign of the men anywhere. Turning back around she smiled, "I don't think we'll be able to convince the manager he has termites, do you?"

Mary started to laugh, she couldn't help it, the absurdity of the situation had caught up to her and she just had to wonder if maybe what sanity she had had gone away along with the wall. Looking down at Sammy she knew that whatever he did had saved their lives, and she couldn't stop feeling the sadness that it had been necessary for him to expend such power. Reaching out, she took her little boy into her arms and held him close; making room for the not so excited puppy that was determined to stay close to its 'pet'. She knew that people were talking, others had arrived to see what happened, and explanations had to be made, but she couldn't be bothered with the details going on around her; she was too busy willing her little boy to be ok.

Watching his mom hold Sammy close gave Dean a relieved feeling, he hadn't realized that he had been nervous about his parents' reaction to his little brother. He knew that they still loved the little guy, but he also knew that it would be so easy to treat him differently now also. Looking around the room, he still couldn't believe what he had seen. Although he hadn't expected things to go flying around, he wasn't too worried about it either, it seemed to get the bad guys attention away from pointing their guns at the people he loved. It wasn't until he saw the wall explode and the men get sucked out that he had started to wonder what was really going on. It didn't take him long to figure it out when he looked at his little brother's still form, and he was sure that Sammy wasn't breathing… he was sure about it. Thankfully though, Sammy started coming around and after looking around a moment, went to sleep as if nothing was wrong. He saw Jim and Caleb's expressions and knew that they didn't think this was normal in any sense of the word.

John was thankful that his family was alright, he really didn't care how it happened as long as everyone was safe and sound. He saw little Sammy sleeping and couldn't help but wonder about the little powerhouse his boy was. Now though they needed to figure out how to get everyone out of here and somewhere a little more secluded and safe until they could figure out what was going on. The manager had been bewildered at first, then it moved to suspicious, and had finally settled that the whole lot of them were actually home grown terrorists practicing to overthrow the government. John knew that if that last bit was allowed to take hold, his family would never get any peace. Looking over at Jim and Caleb they all silently agreed that it was time to go.

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Damon didn't want to meet with the vile filth, but he knew that someone was going to have to stand up to the man if the Winchester's were ever going to find peace. It had amazed him how many people knew little Sam and had been totally enthralled by the boy. Unfortunately he knew that people could be fickle and that if Jacob Winchester had his way, those very people who thought Sam and his family were wonderful, would turn on them in a heartbeat if they thought there was something different going on with them. So now he was sitting in a small café finishing his breakfast and waiting for the bastard to show up so he could fill him in on a few details of his own; mainly how he knew more about Jacob Winchester than the older man knew about his son's family. He had found out a lot of interesting things, and he wouldn't have a problem letting the reporter in on all the nice juicy details especially since he knew it would destroy any credibility he might have had.

Jacob Winchester hated the idea of meeting anyone in a public place that he wasn't used to, it made him uneasy. However, the doctor had told him to be there or suffer the consequences. He smirked at that, a doctor threatening him was something new, and he found it amusing. He looked at his watch and knew that he had plenty of time before his meeting with the reporter to finish filling in all the blanks in the story, so he walked in the small café and immediately knew who he was meeting. He had known the guy would be young, but he was amused to see that such a young pup was going to try and muscle him into doing something he wasn't going to do. As he approached the table he was just about to tell the boy how the cow ate the cabbage when something caught his eye and made his words choke in his throat.

"Sit down." Damon said calmly still working on eating his breakfast. He had told the hospital and the office not to call him at the cafe unless a patient was dying; he had turned off his pager and cell phone and was determined to keep the upper hand in this meeting. He didn't even look at the man in front of him; he just started talking in a low steady manner that left no doubt that he was serious. "Now that you know who I am, I'm going to tell you what you are. You are the person who will leave the Winchester's alone, you will call that reporter and let her know that it was all the ramblings of a drunk old man whos hatred for his son blinded him to the truth. You will do this today, or you won't see tomorrow. Do we understand each other?" Damon looked at the man and knew that his message had been received, it was still unclear if it would be heeded or not.

Nodding in shock, Jacob couldn't believe how something that had been going so right was now falling apart so easily. He watched the doctor gather up his things, put his watch back on and leave after paying his bill and talking to the waitress for a few moments. He continued to stare in shock however, he couldn't help himself. He knew that if what he saw was real, and someone as smart as a doctor wouldn't be stupid enough to fake it, then if he didn't back off from his son's family, then his death wouldn't be a quick and subtle one, no…it would be long and drawn out and extremely painful. Now what the hell was he going to do?

Damon had walked out of the small building and paused only long enough to give a slight nod to the person across the street, then he continued back to the hospital, checking his messages along the way; one way or another, Jacob Winchester would be taken care of.

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Caleb had been driving the first car of their small caravan for almost three hours, and he was starting to get a little worried. He had stopped being concerned about being followed awhile back, his latest anxiety was that little Sam still hadn't woken, that and the whining that Puppy kept doing was making everyone a little apprehensive. He knew that the little guy had expended a lot of power, but he wasn't sure if the impromptu nap was because he was tired, or if he was hurt. Looking at the map, he estimated that they'd be on the road for another hour or so, but he couldn't help but wonder if the little boy had that much time.

Jim had called a friend a couple of hours away to ask for his help. After giving him the rundown, he made sure that the man knew how important all the requested supplies were and they needed them there and set up by the time they hit the door. He hadn't wanted to worry anyone, not that that was going to happen, but he wasn't certain that Sam's continuous sleep was a good thing. The amount of energy the boy had projected had to have played havoc with the small body, but he was more concerned about any damage that may have been done to his heart; they still hadn't tested it yet. Getting to Thomas' cabin would hopefully give them the relief they all needed; the former hunter would be able to run a new ultrasound and see if there were any changes. Jim continued to pray that they hadn't stressed Sam beyond his limits this time; and if they had, that God might forgive them.

Mary sat next to Dean in the backseat with Sammy curled up between them totally oblivious to his surroundings. The longer her little boy stayed asleep, the more she worried he wouldn't wake up. As she continued to stroke the dark curls, she prayed that they could find a way to help bring him back; they couldn't lose Sammy, they just couldn't.

Feeling his brother's chest rise and fall beneath his hand, Dean fell into the comforting role of big brother and protector. He saw that everyone was worried, but he couldn't figure out why; Sammy was just tired. He didn't know exactly what happened, but he did know that they had been very close to losing him earlier and that scared him more than anything. One moment his little brother was lying there still, then it was as if he wasn't really there and he felt Sammy feeling curious and was going to go somewhere else. Now though, he knew that everything would be ok, just as soon as they all calmed down. It amazed him how everyone would forget that tension drained Sammy as much as anything else that had been thrown at him. Once everyone calmed down, then he would too and feel well enough to wake up, it was just taking a little longer this time.

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Thomas Duncan had just setup the equipment that Jim Murphy had requested, and felt the need to sit his ass back down. He knew that he was supposed to have gotten used to his prosthetic legs by now, but it didn't help that it was turning winter again making his remaining joints feel as if he was the Tin Man instead of a retired hunter. Sighing, he put reached over and put another log in the fireplace. He knew that his old friend would arrive with his troupe in awhile, but with everything in place for company he knew that he could sit down for a few minutes and try and piece together what he had been told.

He had never been one to believe in rumors, but the way Murphy had acted on the phone, it made him wonder exactly it was that he was about to step into. If his suspicions were correct, then it means that he had a real special boy coming for a visit. From what he had heard in the shadows, there was a double nephilium that was being hidden away for its own safety since there were those out there who truly believed that anything not from this planet deserved to be annihilated. Sighing, he wasn't sure what he was supposed to do, but he had a debt to repay, and that's what he would do, then would as politely as he could show them out the damn door.

Hearing the first of the vehicles Thomas slowly made his way to the door to see Caleb, Jim, and an older woman he had never seen get out of Caleb's car before making their way to him. He saw the classic Chevy behind them and had to wonder about the man he saw behind the wheel. Looking over at Jim, he motioned everyone in while asking, "So, where's the patient?" Seeing the look on both Jim and Caleb's faces he was momentarily taken aback… 'Ok… so not some sort of random freak.' He thought wondering even more about the person in question. Being pulled back to the arrival of the rest of his guests he wasn't sure what he was seeing. A dark hair man obviously very protective of those around him, a beautiful blonde woman who stayed next to the man while staying close to the last two remaining occupants of the car; a teenager carrying a little boy as if daring the world to come after them.

Moving back, he let them inside and showed the kid where to put the boy, before turning back to the group and getting another surprise that he would never forget. He had been friends with Caleb longer than anyone else he could think of, and what he saw and heard brought home the seriousness of the situation.

"You mess this up Tom, and so help me God, I'll make you suffer." Caleb growled at his friend, leaving no doubt that he would take any slight on the people in the room as a personal attack.

Nodding his understanding, Thomas looked around then walked back to his makeshift exam area. Looking down at the unconscious boy, he wondered if this was the kid that had so many people up in arms at the moment. As he took the Doppler wand and applied it to the little boy's chest, he carefully watched the screen as the image of a tiny heart beating became visible. Looking back at Jim he asked, "So, what am I supposed to be looking for exactly, Jim?" Glancing at the others in the room he was trying to get a feel for some indication of why they were all tense about this boy, was it general concern or… "Nevermind, I found it. Damn, what happened to this kid, it looks like he had a mild heart attack."

There were several shocked gasps in the room before John finally asked, "Are you sure that it's just minor?"

Shocked by the question, Thomas looked at the man before looking at Jim for some sort of explanation. When he saw both Jim and Caleb looked as relieved as the man beside him he was really itching for some answers, and was shocked by the voice behind him.

"The doctors said he had damage from a major heart attack, that's why dad asked." Dean said while watching the picture of his brother's heart beating give him encouragement that he was right; his little brother would wake up, they just needed to give him time.

Turning off the equipment, Thomas motioned for everyone to sit down. "I guess someone had better start at the beginning."

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After Jim had filled him in on the events that saw them to his door, Thomas couldn't seem to wrap his head around the information. He had seen a lot of things in his life, and had even lost his legs due to getting in between a pack of hellhounds and their prey, giving him a serious reminder that things weren't always what they seemed. Now though he had to believe that either the little boy he just ran an ultrasound on was a direct descendent of angels in which case the question had to be asked how he could be hurt to begin with, or that the same boy was just a boy being influenced with something supernatural that was healing him from in which case how had these hunters been taken in by the creature. One thing was certain, at the moment he had a lot more questions than answers. He owed Jim his life, the man had pulled him away from the damn hounds in the nick of time and got him to a hospital before bleeding out, so the debt he owed would allow a measure of leeway; but damn he wasn't sure how he felt about holing up a possible creature of hell in his house.

Dean had walked over after listening to Jim tell this stranger his brother's life story, and he wasn't happy about it. Giving the man a harsh glance, he was moving back towards Sammy when the barking of Puppy made everyone stop and stare for a moment until a small voice joined them in the living room.

"Are you going to help my family, Mr. Thomas?"

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AN: Hope you liked it, let me know! 


	19. Chapter 19

Never being a subtle man, Thomas could answer only one way; honestly. "I don't know, is there any reason why I should?" He asked the little boy standing in the doorway looking at him with wide expressive eyes. He could tell that the question was being pondered, and he was starting to get anxious for an answer.

"Is there a reason you shouldn't?" Sam asked, wondering why the man in front of him was so nervous.

"Actually, yeah I guess there are a few reasons why I shouldn't, the first is that I could get killed."

Sam looked at Mr. Thomas and shook his head, 'Uh uh, you don't like me, that's why."

Thomas sat there and continued to watch as the little boy continued to look at him, and it was starting to make him very uncomfortable. "Kid, I don't know you…"

"But you think you do, like the others, you wonder if I'm bad." Sam said calmly, still wondering about the mixed feelings that was coming off the man.

No one spoke, everyone knew that Sammy had his own way of dealing with people, and it was understood that as long as he was holding his own, they wouldn't interfere – for now.

"Well, to be honest I'm not sure about you, I mean you could either be really good or really bad, and I'd like to think that you being a kid then you're naturally good, but then again we don't usually live in a world where things work out like that."

Sam started to giggle as if the man had told a joke, "That's funny Mr. Thomas, I'm not really anything – I'm just Sammy!"

Sammy's statement brought a bought of laughter from around the room making the boy wonder what he said that was so funny, he only told the truth; he was just… him. Looking at the man in front of him he saw how he continued to watch him as if he was expecting some great trick to be performed, or someone to jump out and yell 'surprise!'

Thomas sat there and watched the little boy in front of him. Whatever he was expecting, this wasn't it. This child was so… normal, it was mind boggling. Looking over at Jim he could tell the pastor had his patented 'I would say I told you so, but that would be very prideful of me' look, and he couldn't help but admit that he had indeed made it clear that the boy wasn't a threat. Now if only his other question could be answered, since the boy wasn't under some sort of demonic influence, and he was what they said, how did he get hurt so badly?

"I'd show you, but then I'd get in trouble." Sam said quietly, knowing what the man was wondering didn't make it any easier.

"Show him what Sammy?" John asked, wondering if he should start the car and get them out sooner rather than later.

Sam looked at his Daddy, "He was wondering how I got hurt, and I was going to show him, but then you'd be mad."

Concerned about his son's line of reasoning, John picked Sammy up and sat down with him by the fireplace. "Sammy, we wouldn't be mad at you for doing what you do unintentionally, it's when you do something without thinking about the consequences to yourself that we get upset. Do you understand?" He watched as his little boy sat there and pondered that for a moment before shaking his head. "When you shielded yourself and Dean from the bad guys and made yourself sick, that was too much. That's what makes us upset, that you do too much before your ready."

Sam thought about what his daddy said and a question came to mind, "Daddy, when I'm bigger will I be able to do more things?" When he saw his daddy think about it then nod he asked, "is that why the bad guys want to take me away?" He knew the answer as soon as everyone stopped what they were doing, making him upset. "I don't want to get bigger Daddy, don't make me!" he cried, breaking the hearts of several people in the room, and even getting a sympathetic look from one hardened retired hunter.

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Penny was at a loss, a complete and total loss as to what had come over her eldest daughter. Every year since she was in pre-school, Jessica had put together a party for Fall, just because she thought it got left out after Halloween. Every year she would invite everyone from her class over with fall colored decorations all over the house, leaf shaped cookies, and a golden cider punch that made the boys make more than a couple of comments. Every year was a testament on the ability of children to be able to make something out of nothing, and always leaving insisting that it was the best time they'd ever had. This year however, Jessica had adamantly refused to have it, saying that they didn't deserve it and to tell anyone who asked about it, that she hoped they rot!

Spending half the day trying to get in touch with Jessica's Principal and acting teacher to find out if she knew about what could be going on, she had been relieved to pick up the phone and hear Dr. Mayfield's voice, until she heard, "Mrs. Moore, could you please come to the school, Jessica had a slight run-in with a boy. To be more precise, her fist into his face."

It didn't take her long to get to the school, and even less time to find Jessica sitting in the Principal's office with a mutinous look on her face as if daring anyone to tell her that fighting was wrong. Penny couldn't understand how her normally sweet little girl could be acting so badly. Sure she and Jack had their fair share of arguments recently, but that had been smoothed over with the agreement that everything was thoroughly thought through before any decisions were actually made, which had put a stop to the arguing and even got her and the girls back to the house so they all could be a family again. Knowing that the separation had been hard on the girls, even though it had only been a couple of days, she couldn't help but think that was the cause of all this. Until Jessica looked up and told her exactly what had gone wrong.

"They were making fun of Sammy! They said that he was a monster because of the scar on his throat and then they were saying he was a bad boy because he played with fire and burned his arm. I couldn't let them say that! They didn't even know what happened, and when Sammy gets back they were going to make him feel bad and not be his friends anymore. So I'm glad I hit Billy in the nose, and I'm even happier that I'm not having that stupid party, they don't deserve one!"

Upon hearing her daughter's reasoning, Penny had to agree. Ok, maybe not about punching Billy in the nose, well… not too much anyway… NO!!! That was not how she was raising her children, but then again she couldn't help but see little Sam's eyes looking at her with such pain, as if he truly believed that he deserved everything that life had handed him; yeah, that changed things a little. "Jessica, although I'm glad you stood up for Sammy, you shouldn't have hit Billy. Come on, let's go home and plan for _our_ party… no pesky classmates allowed." As they walked down the hallway she couldn't help but ask, "So, did he cry?"


	20. Chapter 20

AN: Hey everyone... sorry for the wait, things are still a little nuts. Thanks though to Sammygirl1963, otherwise this chapter still wouldn't have gotten posted!

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Dean wanted to hit something, anything. They had no idea if they could really trust this Thomas guy, and now he knew everything about Sammy, it wasn't making for a comfortable night. He watched as his Dad tried to calm his little brother down, but he knew that it wasn't going to work, so instead of standing there, he quickly reached where his Dad was sitting and held out his arms, "I got him Dad." By the time he got Sammy settled on a blanket in front of the fireplace, the little guy was sound asleep again, making Dean feel awful that the last few wakeful moments were spent upset.

John knew that he should have had better answers, but Sammy had a way about him that you just couldn't lie to him; you didn't have to, he usually already knew. Now as his attention swung between the man Thomas Duncan and his boys, he had to wonder if they made a mistake coming here. From the man's own mouth it was obvious that he thought that Sammy could swing either way, but how could anyone who knew the little boy ever really believe that?

"Well, it looks like I could be wrong, even if it does bring about more questions. You all may as well get comfortable at the table in the other room, the boys are safe there and we need to get this hashed out if anyone's going to get any sleep tonight." Thomas said as he groaned while standing, some days it really didn't pay to get out of bed.

Jim nodded and ushered the others into the small dining area that looked more like a storage nook, but was more than suitable for their needs. Not wanting to lose any time, he took the matter into his own hands. "Well, Thomas, are you going to really help this family, or are you still biding your time to see if little Sam over there is going to sprout horns and a tail?"

Thomas couldn't help but smirk at Jim's statement. "You know as well as I do that true devils don't have horns and tails." He said with a smile. "As far as helping the family, you know I will, helping the little boy… I need a little more information before I make my determination."

Standing there listening to someone talk about one of her boys that way made Mary want to show the man that it wasn't Sammy he needed to worry about. Now though, as she watched her boys sleep in front of the fireplace she knew that they needed to find out if they misplaced their trust. "Mr. Duncan, so far you know more about our boys than most of our friends, so lets not dance around. For whatever reason, you don't trust an eight year old little boy and I want to know why."

As Thomas stood there taking in Mary's anger, he couldn't help but admire the woman. Glancing around the room he nodded in agreement. "Alright, you want to know, I'll tell you. Nephilium's are reputed to be extremely strong, powerful even, and from what I've heard about this particular boy, there are a lot of beings on both sides wanting him for their own purposes. Now either they've hyped him up beyond measure, or he's not letting us see the real him; either way, it's making me more than a little nervous." Seeing the confused looks on their faces he asked, "What's his lineage that's making everyone jump at their shadows, Jim?"

Jim knew where this was going, but he also knew that the retired hunter was about to get a shock. "His Paternal Grandmother is Hariel, and his Maternal Grandfather is Crocell." Jim told him with a knowing look on his face.

Thomas had been pouring a drink from the cabinet when Jim shared his information, but paused the bottle in mid air when he heard the names. Carefully putting the bottle down, he went to the nearest chair and sat down. "Hariel _and_ Crocell? Are you drunk man?" he asked not believing what he was hearing. "Well, damn… no wonder everyone's in a tizzy. So, what can he do besides heal people accidentally almost killing himself in the process?"

Not sure what they should tell the man, both John and Mary looked around for some guidance, and found it in Caleb. "Never mind what he can do so far, just worry about how to help keep the wolves at bay until he can control it. Just because he has a Cherub for a Grandmother and a Hellish Duke for a Grandfather doesn't mean that he's not going to take after his human side as well, so quit thinking he's omnipotent; he's a little boy for Christ's sake, and at the moment a very scared one." Caleb watched the former hunter for any sign of what he was thinking and he could practically see the wheels turning in his head. Finally though, Thomas got up, finished pouring his drink then after a decisive pause downed it in one gulp.

"Ok, I can find out who did the hit and send them on a wild goose chase. It won't take them long to figure it out though, so if I were you I'd hightail it out of here soon. Caleb, you know as well as I do that some of these people don't take kindly to being told that their ideas are wrong. Jim, I suggest you find a way to keep the little boy a better secret than what you've been doing, oh, and you parents… find a way to keep him focused. I don't know from personally experience, but I've seen what happens when someone comes into their 'gifts' and can't get a handle on them… we usually end up hunting them down." As he looked around he saw the horrified look on everyone's faces. "Look, you asked for my help and I'm going to give it, as for the rest of it – don't expect much."

"That's it?" Dean asked in the doorway. "You act as if my little brother is some sort of _thing_, and then you suddenly act as if you're doing us a favor by helping us? Give me a break!" Glancing back towards Sammy, Dean made sure that his brother was still sleeping. "You think that we can't take care of him?" he asked looking back at the person that Jim and Caleb had both put their faith into.

John knew where Dean was coming from; this person was suddenly acting as if they should feel grateful to whatever it was he was offering. Although he was happy that the man had been able to tell them that Sammy was getting better, the way that he kept referring to his little boy was really getting to him. The more he thought about it, the more he was starting to see how much of a mistake it was to take the boys away from home. "Dean, get Sammy ready. Jim, thanks for keeping us, but I think it's time to head back."

Mary was thrilled that they were leaving; things had taken a very bad turn since they had left home, and she would only feel better once they were back where they belonged dealing with whatever was out there on their terms. Looking over at John, she saw that her husband had more than enough of 'getting away' and was ready to defend their boys against whatever was out there head on. She almost felt sorry for Jacob Winchester; almost.

Dean had bundled his little brother up and already had him in the car before his parents had a chance to tell everyone goodbye. He knew that Izzy would probably come and stay with them for a little while like she promised, but something told him that Caleb was going to be there too.

"Dean, did I do something bad?" Sam asked, confused at why they were leaving so soon.

"No buddy, you didn't do anything wrong. It's just time for us to get back home and figure out what we're going to do next, ok?" Dean said, pulling his Sammy closer in hopes of making his little brother feel better.

Petting Puppy, Sam didn't say anything, but he was still worried that something bad was going to happen. It almost did at Pastor Jim's house, and he couldn't help but feel responsible somehow. He wondered if maybe Crocell knew what was going on, it was odd that he stopped in for a visit. Trying not to think about it too much, he allowed his eyes to close and drifted off to sleep, the sound of his brother's breathing and the feel of Puppy close bringing him a small measure of peace.

When John, Mary and Izzy joined them a few minutes later, they were greeted by the sight of Dean and Puppy guarding over a sleeping Sammy, reminding them that even the most seemingly peaceful moments, aren't always what they seem.

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AN: Hope you all liked this chapter, let me know! 


	21. Chapter 21

AN: Hey everyone... hope you enjoy this chapter...

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Ryan Vic had been a journalist for the last twenty five years and he had a reputation of getting the more unpopular stories told. When he was in his twenties, he didn't mind doing all the leg work and traveling around the world to get the 'real story', but now he was more than content to let other people put out their version of news. He still kept his contacts with the national desks when he'd get a juicy tidbit that he couldn't resist in writing, and that was fine with a lot of people; it kept him out of their hair unless it was beneficial to them.

Not one to doubt his instincts, he had at first scoffed at the drunk who had called telling an outlandish story about a boy who could heal people in Lawrence, Kansas. In fact, he had hung up on the guy twice before the man blurted out a name that he could trace and then his curiosity was piqued. It wasn't that this kid seemed out of the ordinary, except that he didn't seem to really exist. He'd pop in and out of life and no one seemed to think it was odd. When he called the person back and got more information, he had assumed that after a much closer examination of the facts, he'd be able to dismiss it as a drunken crackpot and move on. However after getting some information from a local doctor, he knew that he had enough to pursue this fully. Now all he needed was to verify this story with his source and make sure that all his information was accurate; then he could run with the story and let everyone know about what's really around them.

Meeting with his source was going to be the easy part of the day; after all it had taken a lot of convincing to get the editor to fork over that much cash on the barest of evidence. However once he was able to finalize the story, then he was going to break open a bigger story than what he could think of in his lifetime.

Checking his watch, he wondered where Jacob Winchester was; he didn't have all day; in fact he needed to get the research started to make his current editor happy. Pulling out his phone, he called the number that he was given and couldn't help but feel perturbed that the man was still at home instead of on his way. "Mr. Winchester, this is Ryan…"

"Yeah, uh, I'm sorry Mr. Vic, but you see… I'm really embarrassed but you see I had way too much to drink and have no idea what I told you. I hope that you understand that I've had a hard time after coming back from prison, and I guess I let things get out of control."

Something was off, Ryan could feel it. There was no way that this guy had made what he said up especially after the confirmation he had from some of the hospital staff. "Mr. Winchester, are you sure? I mean you didn't seem drunk when…"

"Look! Just leave it alone!" Jacob insisted before he hung up, leaving Ryan to ponder what just happened and if there was some hidden meaning behind it.

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Mary was thankful to see their home in one piece waiting for them. The trip to Minnesota and back had been stressful to say the least, and she was anxious to get the boys back inside and hopefully back to normal. Looking over to John she could tell he felt the same way.

Waking Dean, John wasn't sure what to do about Sammy. He had slept the whole trip home, but still looked exhausted. Looking at Mary, he couldn't help but hope that she had an idea because at the moment he was too tired to worry about it. So intent on his wife, he was startled when the back door opened and Izzy stepped out of the car.

"I don't know about either one of you, but I'm thinking tonight's the perfect night for the fireplace to be roaring and the sleeping bags to be out."

Mary looked at John and wondered why they hadn't thought about that. Nodding, she quickly made her way to open the door to let her guys in. Although they had planned to leave immediately from Thomas' cabin and come straight home, Jim had convinced them that they needed to relax a little and leave after breakfast the next morning. However, it hadn't taken them long to realize that none of them were going to get very much sleep, especially when Sammy started screaming at two in the morning. It took Jim marking symbols on the motel walls again for her little boy to quiet down again, and after that she had demanded an explanation which had lasted until the sun rose and they all knew that breakfast was the least of their concerns.

Watching John carry Sammy into the house, she suddenly realized how unprepared they were. There were still people out there who were determined to take her little boy from her, any way they could; including driving him insane if necessary.

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Dean knew that something was going on, he could feel it. He wasn't under any delusion that he was special like Sammy, but he did know that he had a connection with his little brother that no one would be able to understand. So when Sammy had started screaming again in the middle of the night, it made him mad; not at Sammy, but at the people attacking him in his dreams. It was the only thing that he could sort out from the conflicting feelings that Sammy was going through; it was as if someone was actually dragging him through his own horrors. Now, more than ever, he was determined to make sure that he protected his Sammy; just like his father did.

Sighing, he took a chance to peek over his shoulder and see his parents were still in the kitchen. He hadn't told him what he remembered, not that it was a lot, but he did remember that he called his father 'Da' and that he had an accent that was like music and liked to laugh. He also remembered that this wasn't the first time he watched over Sammy. Knowing that made him fully understand that this was what his life was supposed to be; protect Sammy, nothing else mattered.

Snuggling up to his little brother, he made sure Sammy was warm enough before he started whispering in his ear. "Don't worry Sammy, I'm here and I'm going to be just like Da and take real good care of you."

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Caleb had wanted to wring Jim's neck by the time he left the priest's presence, but feeling that adding that particular sin to his repartee of questionable acts wouldn't be a good thing. It had never occurred to him that no one had taken the time to show the Winchester's how to shield Sam from the Reader's. In fact, other than the basics on how to protect them from some of the evil's that liked to lurk around, the Winchester's were inadequately prepared. The argument he had with Jim before leaving didn't help his mood, but he knew he was right; Dean is Sam's Guardian, and needs to know how to protect him.

He knew where to start; it wouldn't be hard to convince both John and Mary what needed to be done. In fact, he was sure that they'd want to join in too, if only to better protect the boys themselves, now though, he needed to make sure that Dean's training came about in a way not to alert others to what was going on, otherwise he's have both boys under scrutiny and one was already proving to be more that enough.

It had taken quite a bit of searching to find William's sword, and getting his hands on it wasn't that easy either, but he managed it and he knew that there was no going back. Everyone knew that William's family had been Guardian's since the Middle Ages and his sword had been passed down from the head of the family of each generation as a rite of passage. Now it was up to him to make sure his friend's legacy continued with Dean, and it started with passing on the family heirloom, the family pride, to the boy who already had proven himself to be worthy of it.

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Sam knew that everyone was upset, but he couldn't tell why. It seemed like lately they were always upset about something and he couldn't help but think that it had to do with him. Opening his eyes he saw the fire in the fireplace was low but still warm and Puppy watching him, making him smile. He felt Dean behind him, and knew that his big brother hadn't left him once all night, making him feel safe.

Looking around he didn't see anyone else around, but he knew they were close which made him think they were in the kitchen. He liked it when the house was quiet, because then he could let himself go a little. He didn't do it often, but sometimes it felt good, almost like stretching. He saw Puppy watching and waiting, and he wondered about it; was he waiting for something to happen? Finally though, Sam got tired of not doing anything, so he brought a small ball from the corner of the room and then gently tossed it so Puppy could chase it.

"You're getting pretty good at that little brother." Dean said sleepily while looking at his Sammy with barely opened eyes. "Maybe you can get us some milk while you're at it?"

"Silly Dean, I can't do _that_… I'm still…. OH! You won't tell will you Dean?" Sam asked almost panicked. He didn't want Daddy to get mad for doing something too soon.

Smirking, Dean propped himself up on his elbow, "Nah, its cool kiddo. Mom and Dad were thinking about having you practice anyway. Just don't get too carried away, ok? We don't want you getting sick again." Dean ruffled Sammy's hair before tickling him in the side until he squealed.

Dean had no idea what was going to happen next, but he knew one thing; when it came down to it, it was him and Sammy against the world, and he wouldn't have it any other way.


	22. Chapter 22

AN: Alright, another segment of the series has come to a close, but don't panic... I've already decided to make another sequel. Hope you've enjoyed this one.

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It was after lunch the next day when they got a surprise visit, and they couldn't have been happier to see them. Jack and Penny had pulled up to the cottage and Sammy was the first to make it to the car telling them to hurry inside since it was getting cold. Penny immediately looked at Jack before turning back to Sammy, "You're right, it's very cold. I tell you what, you go inside and stay warm, we'll be right in." They watched a very happy Sammy run back in the house calling to everyone that they had company. "So, do you still think he doesn't have an independent bone in his body?" she asked harshly before opening the car door. "Let's get this over with, we need to get back and get started."

Jack knew that Penny was upset, he didn't need to have been married this long to her to see that, but he had hoped that she would be able to move past it as least for a little while, it was really starting to wear him out. Getting out of the car he followed her inside, feeling as if he was walking to his death instead of the welcoming home of his best friend. Almost close to the door he heard Mary and Penny catching up while Sammy played with his puppy and Dean dutifully watching and John and Izzy were discussing something off the side, taking a deep breath he walked in hoping that he didn't get his ass handed to him on the way out.

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Damon had received a call from Mary Winchester earlier to let him know they were back in town and that if he had time after his shift to 'swing by' so they could get everything settled. He was thankful for the faith she put in him not to bring a team of brainiacs with him to dissect her youngest boy. Knowing that they were under more pressure than he could ever imagine he watched the clock dutifully and was relieved to see that with his rounds already completed he could now leave and hopefully start the process of making it up to the Winchester's.

Almost to his car he heard footsteps fall in behind him and he had to wonder if this was some long outdated retribution for something he had done in his past life. Slowing only slightly he checked the shadows and thought that he might be able to deal with the person on his own as long as his wasn't armed. Turning suddenly he was surprised to see a middle aged man dressed in slacks and a polo shirt looking as if he had a specific purpose.

Ryan Vic hadn't wanted his presence known at the hospital, after all what good would it have done except make certain people nervous. After speaking to several people before he had been confident that he could go back and ask for more information if needed, however the word had gotten out that their 'miracle boy' was being targeted for media attention and all of a sudden they didn't want to be seen as the kooks who helped to break the story of the year. So instead, he found out who Dr. Damon Lucas was and waited for him to leave. Now though he was starting to see the error of his idea.

"Dr. Lucas, my name is Ryan Vic and I wondered if I could ask you a few questions?" he asked, hoping that with this one meeting he could smooth things over with his editor and get the story he wanted.

Damon looked at the man and ran the name over in his tired mind, finally it clicked. 'Damn it'. "The reporter right? Sorry, I doubt I have anything that would be newsworthy. You know there's a fundraiser to improve the pediatric ward, you might ask the…"

"No, you misunderstand me. I'm needing confirmation on a patient of yours, a Samuel Winchester. I hear he's a very special little boy." Ryan said, watching the doctor closely for any sign of recognition of what he was talking about.

Smiling widely Damon gushed, "Sam! Sure, the little guy's been through hell and back and he still smiles. Special, that's an understatement. Everyone says the same thing, if they're in a bad mood little Sam can brighten them back up just with his smile. Man, let me tell you, if I had more patients like him, my job would be a lot easier!"

Watching the doctor, Ryan wasn't convinced, "Dr. Lucas there have been reports that he has come back from the near dead, healed others who have been listed as lost causes, and has even been dubbed the hospital's 'miracle boy'. What do you say about that?"

Laughing, Damon wasn't sure if it was because of his sudden manic feeling to murder someone or the audacity of the reporter to stand that close to him and say that. "Look, Mr. Vic you have to understand, this is a hospital. We get close calls on a daily basis, and yes, it's the kids who seem to hit us the hardest. So if we see one that comes through here as tiny as Sam is, already having problems; it's easy to forget that the fight of the person is often a lot bigger than the person themselves. So, is he a 'miracle boy', yes; but so are over half the patient's in the pediatric ward who's beat the odds for another hour. Now, I'm hoping that answered your question, because in all honesty, I'm too tired to stand here and answer anything more."

Ryan watched the doctor walk away and tried the only other thing he knew. "I was given this information by the boy's grandfather Jacob Winchester."

Damon's voice echoed in the parking garage as he continued to walk away. "Jacob Winchester is a spiteful drunk. Check into _his_ story, and you'll see why you should never have believed him."

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Having their friends sitting at the kitchen table again felt so right and Mary couldn't have been happier. Sure there was the irritation of what had happened at the hospital and Jack's attitude towards Sammy, but they were going to get beyond this; they had to. It had felt so good being able to talk to Penny face to face and she knew her friend felt the same way. Neither liked having distance between them, they couldn't read the other as well, which made Mary suddenly realize that something was wrong. Looking at both of them, then at John, she had to wonder what was going on, and if she was going to like it.

Penny looked at Jack and told him silently to get it over with, and he had to agree, it was better to jump right in and get it over with. "Um, Penny and I, well you already know that there has been some tension for awhile. What you don't know is why." Taking a deep breath he looked to make sure that the boys were still occupied elsewhere. "I've received an invitation to start a practice in California, in fact it would be full of research funding through the university there and… I've accepted the offer."

The room was quiet for a few moments while the questions hung over their heads. Finally it was a small voice off to the side that got their attention. "Don't worry Uncle Jack; we'll take care of Aunt Penny, Jessica, and Mariah while you're gone." Sam said confidently, he was sure that everything would be fine since everything was going to go back the way it was.

Uncomfortable, Jack knew this was what he was trying to avoid. Shaking his head, he looked back at Sam. "I'm sorry Sam, you misunderstood. They'll be moving to Palo Alto with me."

Sam looked at Jack not sure what was going on. He knew that he should understand, but he couldn't seem to get his head to wrap around it. He felt Dean put his arm around his shoulder and he turned to his big brother. "So that means we're moving too, right?" he asked, knowing that that had to be the missing piece, the one thing they hadn't gotten around to saying yet. "We can come back and visit everyone right?"

Dean looked at Sammy and felt the confusion even as his little heart felt like breaking. He had no idea what to do about this, Sammy was smart and had already on some level figured it out, but there was still that small part that couldn't accept something so cruel. "No Sammy, we're not moving, they are. They're going to California and we're staying here."

John and Mary both stood and watched as their youngest son's world crumbled around him. They couldn't believe what they heard either, but there it was out in the open, and the one who was hurting the most from it was the very person they had swore to protect; but how do you protect from a broken heart?

"No! No, you can't move! Jessica's my best friend besides Dean, and Mariah is my friend too!" Sam looked at Dean worried, "Who'll be my friend now Dean? Who'll sit with me at lunch and keep…"

Knowing that something is about to happen and still being able to stop it has always been difficult and Dean had to wonder as usual how such a small guy could run so fast. Chasing after his brother through the front door and out into the cold, he heard his dad yell at Jack, and he was happy for it.

"Congratulations Jack, it looks like you finished what others only started. You broke his heart when others were only able to bruise it. Damn it! If you even thought this was a possibility, you should have said something; we could have dealt with it. Now we get this out of the blue and you want what… acceptance?" John was furious and he had a feeling that this would be the only time he'd be able to let Jack know how he felt. "You berated us for the way you thought we were raising Sammy, you were the one insisting that he wasn't at the point he should be, but it's you who knew all along that you were going to help create something safe and secure just to yank it away. Get out! You want to leave, then go. I don't know you anymore Jack, and honestly, I don't think I want to."

Jack nodded; he had suspected that John would feel that way. It had been something that he and Penny had been debating ever since he told her. His reputation was shot here, and the strain on his family was getting worse no matter how hard they tried to shield the girls. It was the most logical step to take, even if it felt wrong.

Mary and Penny hugged not wanting to let go, but knew that this wouldn't be settled anytime soon. Both promising to keep in touch even if their guys were stubborn jackasses; both promising that they would find a way to keep their family together in spirit if not in body.

Watching the car leave, John and Mary both knew that even though Dean had Sammy, they needed to be there too. Turning towards the side of the house it didn't take long to find Dean holding a sobbing Sammy in his arms, and wondered how they would be able to fix this once they heard what their little boy kept repeating.

"I'm sorry I was bad Dean, I'm sorry I was bad. They don't have to go I won't be bad anymore."

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AN: For all those interested, I'm planning on naming the next one Good Times, Bad Times... yeah, I'm a Zepplin fan, what can I say? 


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